Compiled from Newsy Reports KATHMANDU - With no other records left to break on Mt Everest this season, Nepalis are turning their attention once more to the neglected arena of politics where a veteran statesman shattered all previous records this week by becoming prime minister for the umpteenth time.
A jubilant, but visibly tired, Mr Surya Bahadur Thapa was mobbed by reporters as he arrived at Base Camp in Maligau, where he said: "I just wanted to prove to myself that I could do it, each time is a challenge." Asked if he would try to be head of government once again in the foreseeable future he said: "Yes, my goal is to hold office for a world record 50 times, and I think given the state the country is in, and with support from my colleagues inside and outside Nepal, there is no reason why I can't do it."
Thapa shattered the previous repeat ascent record held for just six months by his predecessor, Mr Lokendra Bahadur Chand, who was prime minister so many times that the Nepali people have lost count. In any case, carbon dating of some historical artifacts found in his household have removed any doubts that Mr Thapa had been appointed prime minister for the very first time during the late Lichhavi Period.
Earlier this week, there was a long queue outside the West Gate of the Royal Palace made up of Nepalis from various walks of life lining up to stake their claim to prime ministership. Some said they had applied with a Manpower Agency for new job openings in South Korea, but were also trying for prime ministership just in case they didn't get to go to Seoul.
Others were there to prove the point that in a democracy any citizen is eligible to try his or her hand at being prime minister at some point in their lives, and so what if they didn't get the US diversity visa lottery? Most simply just wanted to get into the Guinness Book of World Records.
One eager candidate, Pokche Prasad, said he wanted to try to crush the previous land speed record by being prime minister for the shortest period in Nepali history. Clutching his photo ID and handwritten petition to His Majesty, he said: "I'll be happy if I can be PM for just five minutes. It will make my parents very proud."
A random sample of some others in the queue showed no dearth of imagination as to what Nepalis can achieve if they just put their minds to it. One social climber wanted to be prime minister just so she could be the first Nepali female to hold the top job without the aid of bottled oxygen. "It will be a breathtaking achievement if she makes it," said one western diplomatic source.
Near the end of the queue was two-year-old Ankit Ascharya munching a fist full of 'PM' Instant Noodles. His mother said Ankit showed all the qualities to go down in history as Nepal's youngest prime minister. Also spotted in the queue was a noted columnist wearing a hat emblazoned with the message 'Why Not Me?'. He said modestly that he wanted to be the first journalist to be the country's premier. "If nominated, I swear I'll never write another weekly column again, and you can quote me on that," the reporter told reporters.
