By Barnes Mawrie
Some days ago I had written in my article titled “Corruption: A different perspective” about a proactive approach to fighting corruption other than the Jan Lokpal Movement. Now that the Bill is kept in cold storage while the political parties are engaged in mutual mud slinging, it is opportune to speak of a third approach which I would name a “corrective approach”. I write this in the hope that some right thinking citizens (especially those at the helm of state affairs) will draw some inspiration from this.
Perhaps all Indians will agree that one of the causes for rampant corruption in our system is the politicization of every activity in the state’s administration. There is not a department in our system that is free from politics. Unfortunately, even the appointment of a Grade IV clerk has to go through some political channel. At times the meddling hand of politics is even felt in private-run institutions like schools and colleges etc. This sort of system breeds corruption to a high degree for it encourages graft. The saying “money rules” is applicable to such a system like ours. Another disadvantage of such a politicization, is the interference of politicians or the so called “political pressure” in the working of government departments which are strictly meant to promote public welfare. I have seen in European countries public welfare departments functioning without interruption even in the absence of a political government. This is possible because such departments are totally independent of political powers. Such a situation is unthinkable in India where every department works at the pleasure of a political government. So we are not surprised to see bureaucrats become puppets in the hands of scheming politicians. We have seen in recent years how some top bureaucrats in our State who tried to bring in some constructive reforms, are unceremoniously removed because such reforms do not correspond to the politician’s interest.
The only solution to this problem is to depoliticize such public welfare departments. Politicians should be humble and sincere enough as to accept their own limitations. They should stop meddling in every affair of public life. The public welfare departments must be empowered in their own rights. Many times we the public are also to blame for this. Do we not empower and embolden the politicians to indulge in such malpractices whenever we approach them even for a silly thing as getting admission in a school or endorsing for a job? So let the politicians be where they should be. Government departments be it PWD, PHE, Health or Education should be allowed to function without any political pressure. They should be directly accountable to the public.
A second lacuna in our system which has aggravated corrupt practices, is the so called “red tapism”. Our country is notorious for this. I have had a personal experience in this. Way back in 1996 I was in Kolkata airport to get a clearance for my consignment from Italy. Literally I had a hell of experience in trying to get as many as twenty signatures from different rank of officers in the Custom Office. I was compelled to dole out some money to every officer for his signature. That dreadful day I lost not only my money but more so my precious time! A job which should have taken just ten minutes took me three days at length. This is what we call red tapism in India. It is present in every government department. This is the reason why to get a paper signed, a citizen has to go up a ladder of officers from the lowest to the highest grade. Everyone knows that unless you pay a clerk, your papers may not even reach the desk of the “bara babu”. Red tapism promotes graft and corruption at all levels. The poor public is left at the mercy of the system. Moreover, because of red tapism how many of our illiterate villagers have lost the opportunity of availing themselves of numerous central government funds and grants. How do we expect a poor ignorant farmer to know the intricacies of such a system for even the educated ones are left confused? How many days could he afford to spend pursuing a project if his family is still living from hand to mouth? All that he could do is to forego such rightful benefits. Unfortunately, the politicians and government officials take advantage of such a situation and they siphone off project money while maintaining a perfect record. How we wish that red tapism disappears from our administrative system so that we get our jobs done as quickly as possible and with zero bribe! Can’t our government do something about it?
Experience has shown that coalition governments do not function effectively, at least not so in India. Gone are the days when a single party would command a majority in the parliament and so could implement whatever project they wanted. Today with the coalition governments both at the centre and in the states, we see a down sliding quality of governance in the country. Many bills remain unpassed (like the recent Lok Pal bill), many projects remain stagnant and many policies are unimplemented. How much time and public money have been wasted in pacifying the coalition partners? We have seen how a party like the TMC can hold the government to ransom. Horse trading and bribing is rampant in a coalition government. Perhaps it is time that the Indian voters allow only two parties in the parliament or assemblies. Let the Congress and the BJP be the two contending parties. We can do this without amending the Constitution if we decisively elect MPs only from the two major parties. If we choose to do this, all other national and regional parties will die a natural death. Thus without even amending the Constitution we would have achieved the desired result. We Meghalayans have suffered enough from a coalition politics. I hope that in the next State election in 2013, we will vote only for two parties and so ensure a stable government for ourselves.
In conclusion I would say that fighting corruption does not merely lie in the passing of a Lok pal Bill, but it rests on a collective sense of responsibility towards our nation. Our politicians and bureaucrats need to become more people-oriented and “patriotic” to a great extent. They need to understand that they are “public servants” and not “public bosses”. Is not the word “minister” from the Latin root “ministrare” meaning to serve? How come then that a minister behaves like a monarch? We the public on our part, need to be more responsible and civic in the exercise of our rights and duties. Soon we will be exercising our right and duty to vote, let us do it with a sense of responsibility and not be swayed by pressure groups (be it religious or secular). The public in Meghalaya need to display more political wisdom in the choice of their leaders or else we are doomed to a perpetual political hades.
(The author is a social thinker, researcher and a Salesian priest)