By H. H. Mohrmen
Election is becoming a tamasha and the responsibility of converting the election to a festival is not limited to the parties and the candidates only. Now even the Election Commission helps add colours to the already vibrant gala. The Commission in its effort to woo voters has come up with innovative ideas by releasing musical albums, organizing kite flying shows, biking expedition, painting and what have you. So isn’t the Commission also responsible for the tamasha? Or is it a case of, “If you cannot beat them; join them?” And how is the Commission any different from the political parties today? The people of the region have their own festival to celebrate the coming of spring and the election and the extravaganza that comes along with it are in a way a prelude to the spring festivals that will follow suit.
Has election been able to really bring direct benefits to the people? How much have people benefited from the elections? Or are elections becoming an opportunity for leaders of various parties to display their wit and wisdom in order to win votes and for the cronies and the chamchas to prove their allegiance to the party and the candidate? Sometimes these wits are in bad taste. The recent one came from the Chief Minister who referred to PA Sangma’s political venture as a “death wish.” To say that it is a dead man’s wish to win another election or calling somebody a wolf in the garb of a sheep is not in good taste. One wishes that these stalwarts debate on issues that matter to the state than hitting each other below the belt. Seems like this is not likely to happen in Meghalaya! Election speeches here are about tomfoolery so that people have the chance to laugh at the cost of another candidate. So this is the standard of election debates in the state.
On the other hand if one considers the numbers of crore-pati candidates in the fray, one can’t help but asked oneself if these super rich citizens of the state really have a genuine desire to serve the people? If they really want to serve people is joining politics the only way? Aren’t there other ways for millionaires to serve people? It reminds me of a poster I saw at the Gandhiji’s Sabarmati ashram in Ahmedabad which says “I will give you a talisman. Whenever you are in doubt or when the self become too much with you, apply the following test. Recall the face of the poorest and the weakest man whom you may have seen, and ask yourself, if the step you contemplate is going to be any use to him. Will he gain anything by it? Will it restore his control over his own life and destiny? In other words will it lead to swaraj for the hungry and the spiritually starving millions?” One wonders if any of the candidates in the fray ever made this test before they did anything in their life. How many of these individuals ever recalled the face of the poorest and the weakest people they have met in times other than during the election? With so much money, there is so much that they can do for the poor and the needy people and yet they choose to blow it up in the election.
Looking at the list of candidates in the two Lok Sabha seats in the state which says that we have as many as 9 crorepatis, it looks like people are setting another qualification for a person to be eligible to contest in the election. If the list of the candidate is taken into consideration then it seems like you don’t need educational qualifications to be a candidate, but you certainly have to be a crorepati to contest in the election. It seems like the parties too are looking for a candidates with deep pocket to contest from the party and the bigger the bank balance the greater the chances of winning the election. Money is the only criteria for the party to select a candidate and the candidate’s winnability depends on how much wealth he has. Hence there is only one candidate who is not a crorepati and that is not the former pastor either.
Recently along with an NGO we visited several villages to conduct a financial literacy campaign. We also did a preliminary survey to find out the numbers of people in the village who are holding a bank account. To our surprise we found that less than 30% of the people in the villages have accounts in the banks, and we are talking about financial inclusion in this country! Then curiosity got the better of me and I could not help but compare the situation with our candidates who have many accounts in the banks and some even have as many as 25 bank accounts in one name.
There is debate in church which has spilled over to the public domain about the former pastor contesting the election. The case of PBM Basaiawmoit was even compared with that of the late Rev. JJM Nichols Roy by his supporter. One wonders why people are even debating this issue now when this is the second time that the pastor has contested in the election? But whichever side of the debate the members of the church are in, the fact of the matter is, like his predecessor, Basaiawmoit has at least created a schism in the church and unfortunately in bah Joy’s case the church split into two.
Every election parties come up with colourful manifestos printed on glossy paper. But are parties really serious about what is mentioned in the manifesto? Look at the manifesto of any party. What do we see but the same old promises that have not been kept. A cursory study of the manifesto will only find that the contents are the same; only the language or the priority changes. Yet people allow the same parties and sometimes the same people to represent them.
At the end of the day, after the election result is declared what happen to the common people? It will be a repeat of the same old story. The poor will continue to suffer. There will be lack of medical care for those who depend on government hospitals and lack of educational opportunities for the children of poor families. Poor people will continue to suffer from lack of potable water and the absence of good roads. There will not be even a semblance of development anywhere in the constituency. And yet at the end of the next five years parties and candidates will come with another set of manifesto with the same promises and voters will join in the revelry.
Elections come and go and very soon people will forget the partying and go back to their own chores, while both the successful and the unsuccessful politician will continue to exploit the poor. The politicians and their cohorts will continue to abuse the name of the poor and the marginalized for their own vested interests, but the poor will remain as they are. At the end of another five years candidates will come back to the people and provide them the tamasha and the cycle continues. This is how politically active our people are. Indeed our political life begins and ends with the election.
The only great leveler is the nature because the cycle of season affects everyone and for the poor farmers in the village after the election, it is back to basics and back to the nature where he rightfully belongs. He looks to the nature which provides him his basic needs. He depends on the four seasons to feed his hunger and to cater to his needs. Hence the coming of spring is to be celebrated with pomp and gaiety. Thank goodness the election serves as a prelude to the spring festival.