Saturday, February 16, 2019
Q#7: Can Democracy flourish in a party-less system?
Party-less governance (or political system) implies that within the elected house, the people’s representatives are independents not bound by the diktat of the political party which sponsored them. A constitutional amendment can enforce this. This is not inconceivable since every representative belongs to a religion, but within the elected house religions have no role in the political process (of secular nations).
Once the elected house meets for the first time, the speaker is elected and then the leader of the house, who will be the prime minister/chief minister. The leader, who is expected to be non-partisan, then chooses the members of the cabinet and council of ministers from any of the members and forms the government. The individual representative’s past performance and reputation will matter at every level. There will not be any other consideration.
Bills can be passed and decisions taken based on the merit of the case. Nobody needs to please anyone else. Outside the house, the representatives may have political affiliation but within the elected house political parties will have no role. In case the PM/CM or a minister does not fulfil the expectation of the house and behaves in a partisan manner, a mechanism can be worked out to replace him.
Thus every representative of the people will be focused on the needs of his/her constituency and would strive to fulfil them by bringing it to the notice of the elected house. He need not please any party forum to take up the matters pertaining to his constituency. Political parties can provide the forum to bring people’s issues to focus. They can advice the elected representatives affiliated to them, but it will not be binding on the representative.
In such a setup independent candidates can contest election without any political backing. All that matters is the goodwill of the people. The true merit of the candidate will matter and not his affiliation to a political party. A mechanism to recall the elected representative by the people of that constituency can be evolved if his performance is not satisfactory. Elections will be simple matter-of-fact affairs. Wasteful expenditure to impress the electorate by the political parties will be curbed.
Thus a party-less political system can flourish and make democracy more meaningful and successful. It has taken several centuries for people to start thinking independent of religion. Similarly it will take time for people to think independent of political parties. It is human nature to identify oneself with a group or way of thinking. But that need not stop them from rising above such considerations within the elected house.
Once the elected house meets for the first time, the speaker is elected and then the leader of the house, who will be the prime minister/chief minister. The leader, who is expected to be non-partisan, then chooses the members of the cabinet and council of ministers from any of the members and forms the government. The individual representative’s past performance and reputation will matter at every level. There will not be any other consideration.
Bills can be passed and decisions taken based on the merit of the case. Nobody needs to please anyone else. Outside the house, the representatives may have political affiliation but within the elected house political parties will have no role. In case the PM/CM or a minister does not fulfil the expectation of the house and behaves in a partisan manner, a mechanism can be worked out to replace him.
Thus every representative of the people will be focused on the needs of his/her constituency and would strive to fulfil them by bringing it to the notice of the elected house. He need not please any party forum to take up the matters pertaining to his constituency. Political parties can provide the forum to bring people’s issues to focus. They can advice the elected representatives affiliated to them, but it will not be binding on the representative.
In such a setup independent candidates can contest election without any political backing. All that matters is the goodwill of the people. The true merit of the candidate will matter and not his affiliation to a political party. A mechanism to recall the elected representative by the people of that constituency can be evolved if his performance is not satisfactory. Elections will be simple matter-of-fact affairs. Wasteful expenditure to impress the electorate by the political parties will be curbed.
Thus a party-less political system can flourish and make democracy more meaningful and successful. It has taken several centuries for people to start thinking independent of religion. Similarly it will take time for people to think independent of political parties. It is human nature to identify oneself with a group or way of thinking. But that need not stop them from rising above such considerations within the elected house.
