People's expectations belied

The common people's expectations from the July 2024 uprising and the political change that followed were naturally high. As such, they would like to believe that with the end of autocracy, there would be meaningful changes in their lives. When the past autocratic regime's hallmarks were the absence of the rule of law, the abuse of power by those in authority, looting of state resources by the people close to power with impunity, pervasive corruption, a total lack of justice etc., the common people were reasonably hoping that finally those oppressive days would be over.
But if everyday experience of the public since the political changeover is any guide, then the facts on the ground tell quite a different story. In this connection, if the recent study findings of a non-government body, the 'Power and Participation Research Centre (PPRC), are to go by, then there are reasons for disillusionment. For, corruption is still pervasive, since majority of the respondents of the study reportedly said, 'nothing works without money'. In fact, 52 per cent of the households surveyed reported to have paid bribe or extortion money before August 2024. However, the good news is that during the months following July 2024, some improvements were visible. By April 2025, some 47 per cent households said they paid bribe or extortion money. Clearly, corruption was still there, though with some restraint. But with the passing of days that temporary restraint has been over as is evident from the recent reports of alarming rise in toll collection, mob justice and other forms of violence across the country. On the economic front, on the other hand, one in five households has been found to be hit by severe economic crisis. The challenges for the victim households stemmed from excessive medical expenses (some two-thirds of the families), while more than a quarter (27 per cent) of the families were in debt burden. Some eight per cent of the families reported educational costs for their children were another significant financial burden facing them.
To be frank, the July upsurge, which had no clear-cut political agenda nor a well-defined leadership, was not expected to effect any lasting change in society. Small wonder that lacking the required political mandate, the reform programmes undertaken by the interim government are still on paper. As expected, those have no reflection in public life. But what the previously noted household-level survey as carried out by the PPRC could find out was an attempt to just scratch the surface of the more general and a deeper malaise in society. It calls for effecting a radical change. But to that end, the country needs to have an elected democratic government with a long-term popular mandate to effect the necessary changes. Admittedly, society cannot get rid of the rampant corruption overnight that majority of the respondents of the study in question had reported. Even so, since corruption is the root cause of all ills of society including bad governance and the absence of rule of law and justice, any well-meaning government that wants start from scratch should first target corruption. As the rot sets in from the top, any government of change must start the cleaning operation from the top.
But sufferings of the families, especially those in the middle and low income bracket under the prevailing socio-economic conditions are beyond description. A recent World Bank report that said extreme poverty has risen by 9.3 per cent, which is equivalent to saying that an additional 3.0 million people have joined the ranks of poverty, only corroborates this view. That means these new victims of poverty cannot simply wait for better days to come in the future. They need immediate support from the government in office.