Nepal's lnterim PM, Justice Karki Vows to End Corruption, Calls for Calm and Cooperation from Citizens

Former chief justice, Sushila Karki, urged "calm and cooperation" after days of violent protests. Authorities said at least 72 people were killed in anti-corruption protests that led to the ousting of government.

Newly appointed first female interim Prime Minister, Sushila Karki,

said she would stay in office no longer than 6 months.

Nepal's interim Prime Minister, Sushila Karki, on Sunday called for "calm and cooperation to rebuild" the Himalayan nation after deadly anti-corruption protests erupted, in which at least 72 people were killed.

The former chief justice vowed to follow protesters' demands to "end corruption" after "Gen Z" youth demonstrations ousted her predecessor.

What interim Prime Minister Karki said;

"We have to work according to the thinking of the Gen Z generation," said Sushila Karki, in her first public comments since taking office on Friday.

"What this group is demanding is end of corruption, good governance and economic equality," she added. "You and I have to be determined to fulfil that."

Activists had used the Discord app to name Karki as their choice of leader, a process Karki acknowledged.

"The situation that I have come in, I have not wished to come here. My name was brought from the streets," Karki said.

The interim leader said she would not remain in the position long and promised to hand power to the next government.

"We will not stay here more than six months in any situation, we will complete our responsibilities and pledge to hand over to the next parliament and ministers," she added, in a national address.

President Ram Chandra Poudel dissolved parliament and set March 5 as the date for elections based on the recommendation of the new prime minister.

What sparked the protests:

A social media ban by ousted Prime Minister Khadga Prasad Oli's government led to the violent protests that left at least 72 people dead in two days of violent protests.

A further 191 were injured according to the government's chief secretary Eaknarayan Aryal. 

Despite the ban being withdrawn, unrest raged on over broader issues concerning Nepal's prolonged economic woes.

Subsequently, thousands of young protesters used social media and chat platform Discord to install Karki as their next leader.

It was the worst unrest since the end of a decade-long civil war and the abolition of the monarchy in 2008.

Opinion: When the Elders Stop Speaking_By William Z. Bozimo

In every civilization, the elders are the living libraries, the walking archives of memory, and the custodians of wisdom gathered from storms survived and seasons endured. They are the bridges between yesterday and tomorrow, between the stubborn truth of history and the fragile hope of the youth. But today, too many elders sit in silence.

Some have been bought by comfort, their wisdom traded for pensions and patronage. Others are chained by fear, remembering what the state did to those who dared to speak too loudly. Still others are drowned out by the endless noise of a generation that scrolls faster than it listens. A society where the elders stop speaking is a society where the youth inherit echoes instead of guidance. 

They stumble through the same mistakes their fathers made, building houses on the same sinking sands, and fighting wars whose futility should have been lessons, not legacies. Silence, in this sense, is not golden, it is dangerous. Our history teaches us that when elders conversed, kingdoms shifted. A proverb could halt a war. A tale by the fireside could teach a child loyalty, courage, and restraint. 

But when that voice is absent, the gap is often filled by entertainers, propagandists, and charlatans who claim to have wisdom without ever experiencing the harsh realities of life and situations that make them authorities in certain aspects. The result is chaos dressed as culture, and ignorance sold as innovation. What is the worth of longevity if it produces no testimony? 

What is the significance of having white hair if it brings no counsel? The wrinkle on the elder’s face is not just a marker of age; it is a line of scripture written by life itself. To hoard it in silence is to deny the nation its scripture. Yet, the burden is not only on the elders. The youth, too, must learn again to listen because even the greatest griot is useless if no one bends an ear. 

The bridge cannot stand if one side refuses to cross. Let the elders speak again without fear, without any price, and without the temptation to flatter power. Let the youth demand their voices, not in nostalgia but in necessity. The people who silence their elders are often those who choose blindness, walking into the future with no lantern but arrogance.

The day the elders stop speaking is the day a nation begins to forget itself. And a nation that often forgets itself does not need enemies because someday, it will devour itself. May the ignorance of individuals not engulf them.

William Z. Bozimo

Veteran Journalist | Columnist | National Memory Keeper

PAP seeks NCC partnership on beneficiaries' empowerment, as Otuaro describes move to ensure national growth and development

 

PRESS RELEASE 

PAP Seeks NCC Partnership On Beneficiaries' Empowerment

The Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP) has sought the partnership of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) on engagement opportunities for some ex-agitators and beneficiaries of the programme.

Speaking during a courtesy visit to the Executive Vice Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of the NCC in Abuja, Dr Aminu Maida, on Thursday, the PAP Administrator, Dr Dennis Otuaro, said that the commission's support would bolster the PAP's post-training empowerment scheme.

Otuaro said there are ex-agitators and beneficiaries of the programme with the requisite qualifications and skills that the commission can employ and enable them to contribute to national growth and development.

According to him, there are many of them who had successfully completed their formal educational and vocational trainings in relevant fields as part of the PAP's effort at human capacity development.

He described them as potential human resources that can be harnessed for the socio-economic advancement of the Niger Delta and indeed the country.

The PAP helmsman said, "We are on a mission to seek support and collaboration with government agencies like the NCC to see how some of them can be engaged so that they can contribute their quota to national development.

"The whole scope of the programme centres on national and human security where the beneficiaries are trained in formal education and vocational skills, including information technology. Many persons have been trained in various professional fields.

"So far, we have over 18000 persons that have been trained. These are potential human resources that should be harnessed for national development. By the design of the programme, we have the post-training, employment and empowerment component.

"So we have an army of human resources that will contribute to national growth when engaged. We also have persons with doctors of philosophy (PhDs) that can be easily engaged, and that is the essence of the human capacity development that we carry out."

In his remarks, the NCC boss expressed the commission's commitment to providing support and equal opportunities to people without bias, stressing that there should also be evidence of value from interventions.

Maida said the commission was poised to carry out its mandate as a regulatory agency while ensuring access to digital connectivity by all citizens.

He, however, called for infrastructure security against vandalism to protect digital assets and sustain digital connectivity across the country.

Signed:

Mr Igoniko Oduma

Special Assistant on Media to the Administrator, Presidential Amnesty Programme

14/09/2025.