KATHMANDU: Former finance minister and former secretary Rameshore Khanal has said that corruption and poor governance begin when public officials fail to separate their private and public lives.
Expressing his views in a Facebook post, Khanal highlighted what he described as the growing influence of middlemen within Nepal’s administrative system.
He said intermediaries often gain access to influential officials by cultivating close relationships with their family members and gradually expanding their influence over decision-making.
According to Khanal, such individuals initially seek to win the trust of an official’s spouse through praise and frequent visits. They then begin bringing gifts for family members, including children and even pets, to strengthen personal ties.
Once they become trusted by the household, Khanal said, it becomes easier for them to persuade the public official to fulfil their interests, whether legitimate or otherwise.
He further claimed that these intermediaries eventually become so influential that they begin directing lower-level officials in government offices as though they themselves hold official authority.
Khanal said this pattern had become deeply rooted in Nepal’s governance system before the recent “Gen Z movement,” warning that the inability of public office holders to maintain clear boundaries between their official responsibilities and personal relationships creates fertile ground for corruption and institutional misgovernance.
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