By Nangkyntiew S. Warjri
There is a saying, ’If you are not interested in politics that doesn’t means that politics is not interested in you’. One government after the other, had failed to meet the expectations of the masses. Most of the political parties especially those that are in the Opposition usually take the side of the people whenever the government implements any policy or passes a law which is contrary to public welfare. But after being elected and being in government those same Opposition political parties proceed in the same way as the previous one! This has made people to lose hope in politics as they believe that it being an instrument of change for the betterment of the society and the state at large has failed the people. Their hopes are shattered and they feel it is better not to participate in voting anymore.
There are people who believe that politics remains politics whichever political party or candidate we vote for and there are people who still hold the faith that if we really choose the right party or candidate there will be a change they had hoped for. These two beliefs remain suspended in peoples’ minds. Politics is today a subject of discussion not only among adults but also among the youth.
As Meghalaya is heading for the state general elections which will take place early next year we see political parties preparing to finalise and declare their candidates for different constituencies in the State. But as a concerned voters and citizens, the question that I would like to ask is, “Do we really care about politics?”
People want change but fail to choose the right candidates. We tend to forget that we are the masters rather than servants. We forget that our vote is our right and therefore we take our votes for granted. We usually point out whenever the government takes any steps that affect the masses while we forget that we can get rid of a government if we choose to. If we want to achieve our dreams for change we must first change ourselves, our mindsets and make sure that our thoughts for positive change can be turned into reality only through our wise votes. Yes, we cannot deny the role of money power during the election period, where candidates purchase votes from the voters. We know for a fact that choosing our representative after taking money from them is like giving away our rights to them to exercise on our behalf. Not only that, taking money and choosing our representative is like encouraging them to engage in activities which involve corruption of public money. During elections they might promise to undertake all kinds of work but as long as we still vote them for money we will end up the same way as we usually have. So, as we dream for a good government to govern our state we as voters must do away with all these negative traits that have given us successive bad governments that do not deliver and which have therefore put is in a worse situation.
Choosing a legislator requires us to do some research and assessment in order to elect the person we need. When we look at the existing MLAs, we find that some of them are not fit to be our representatives. They lack knowledge about how the system works and this led to the increasing role of bureaucracy not only in policy implementation but even at policy making. Though the Constitution of India does not provide any qualification for any candidates to stand for election but choosing and having an educated and committed candidate always makes a difference. In brief, when we look back at history, our leaders during the Hill State movement; the emergence of the middle class and educated leaders to lead the movement always had fruitful results. But today, the manner in which we elect our representatives has muddied the image of our state because of their low performance in delivering good governance and services.
The abysmal number of highly educated leaders or representative in the present legislative assembly and the failure to meet the problems of the public not only make us unhappy but even puts our generation in darkness. However, we cannot ignore the fact that even today, there are still some representatives whose service delivery and conduct matches our expectations.
As we talk about politics in our state, we must take note of our concerns and responsibilities. We can no longer take elections for granted. Instead, we need to remember that our vote – a single vote can make a difference. Remember our state is in a critical condition but we still have a chance to rebuild and restore the prestige and fame of Meghalaya as we have in the past, and the unhappy and unsatisfied feeling in us with those who hold the reins presently can only be changed through our votes during election.
In 2023, as concerned citizens we must question ourselves and ask if we care about politics? Caring about politics does not mean we care only about ourselves but for the future generations. Thus, if we care about politics it means we care for our generation by voting for the right representative and the right party to power. Right means when we choose happiness over regret. There will be numerous candidates and political parties that will come to ask for votes. But we must stick to our thoughts that come what may we will choose the best out of them. If we fail to choose the right MLA it is not because of lack of choice but because we lack responsibility.
Once again, if we really want to see the change we wish to see, we will have to change ourselves in a way in which we look around and understand politics. We must give a chance to those candidates who are well educated and have a commitment towards serving the state and not giving any space for money to buy our votes and rule over us. We must vote with care and as responsible citizens as any wrongful decision made by us in 2023 will make us regret that decision all throughout our lives. This wrong choice will take a huge toll from the future generations.
(The writer is a student of Political Science, Synod College, Shillong. Email:[email protected])