Our leaders only flatter to deceive. Is it not time that people recognized politicians for what they really are and curtailed their level of expectations from them
Goa is gearing up for elections! With the general elections and by-polls to the two assembly constituencies of Shiroda and Mandrem promising to be a feast for the locals who have ‘twice’ the reason to rejoice for, the locals can shrug-off the stillness that has enveloped the state in the wake of the uncertainties that has characterized the typical turbulence in the top echelons of power.
The tug-of-war that has exemplified the power struggle in the state in recent months can now take the backstage with the ‘winnability factor’ of the would-be candidates in the fray not as much of a scorching topic of discussion as the shower of goodies that awaits the masses in the form of promises held out by various political parties as an inevitable feature of the elections. Although in no doubt about these pre-poll assurances falling by the wayside after the elections, the masses have nevertheless loved these fleeting moments of attention received.
But it is indeed a mystery that despite the insincerity of the whole exercise the electorate is often seen accepting such assurances on their face value. After having met with little or no luck with their intermittent ‘crusading’ forays to highlight their woes and bring about resumption in mining activities in the state, mining dependants will definitely not ignore Amit Shah’s renewed mining vows!
On the other hand, Congress in Goa guarantees to resolve the mining mess within 6 months if voted to power! As an issue that has evaded a sensible solution, the mining predicament becomes a definite tool in the hands of scheming politicians who continue to lead people astray with their reassurances on the matter.
The high hopes that wily politicians hold out with their assurances is just unbelievable. They are scheming manipulators who politicize an issue to spin a web of intrigue around it and continue to exploit the situation to further their cause. This has however not deterred the public from lapping up every word of the assurances proffered and waxing lyrical about their leaders’ tall commitments.
This is evident more so during elections when the politicians are at their persuasive best. As glib talkers, they remain unmatched! But elections after elections, is the electorate so foolish so as to accept the same body of lies unflinchingly only to be heart-broken after the elected leaders renege on their promises! Politicians just cannot deliver on their promises! Is it not time that people recognized politicians for what they really are and curtailed their level of expectations from them. Our leaders only flatter to deceive!
Realizing that the key to winning elections lies in making vastly unrealistic promises, politicians have heavily relied on the potency of such effective ‘bluffs’ to woo the electorate. Leaving a trail of broken pre-poll promises has been a way of life with our leaders. In fact, in recent times, elections in India have been driven in much in the same way as a business promotion campaign. The only difference being that in this case a consumer product that is being launched or re-introduced in the market is replaced by the candidate who is vying for power.
However, while consumer anger against the products which have failed to deliver on their promised effects has been quite telling, similar reactions have not greeted leaders who have gone back on their words. They are known to spice-up the promises of curing various ills of the society with guarantees of every fantasy of developmental luxury imaginable. But to date, neither has the black-money stashed away in foreign banks been brought back to the country, nor have Bullet-trains hit the tracks as yet! Just promises!
People have come to expect as much! The fact is that politicians know exactly how to make promises according to what people want to hear. And the people are so used to the trend that they cannot accept anything contrary to what has always been in vogue. As if a fashion statement is being made! It is all the more dismaying to note that this is a global trend! Does this imply that there cannot be an election without promises! Taking on the impression of a ‘barter bargain’ where political parties, never stingy with their promises, have been enticing the voting public to participate with equal zeal in casting their lot with them, elections have re-defined all parameters of the ‘trust factor’. Suffice to say that the electorate has always been the poor loser! The voters will come to distrust them if the political parties and leaders keep promising them the earth and inevitably fail to deliver. But this hardly desist them from getting more audacious with every election and raising the pitch of their solemn assurances.
Sometimes though the promises made acquire polarity which leads to tension between various communities. This is an evident feature in the current political scenario in the northern belt of the country. Thankfully, Goa has been spared the rabid parochialism that characterizes politics in these states. For that matter, even the armed forces have not been spared! Excepting Prime Minister Modi’s grand rhetoric on the One-Rank-One-Pension scheme which has been drawing rare reviews, there is hardly any clarity on the promise made to ex-servicemen on this contentious issue.
The promise of ‘achche din’ ahead however takes the cake for the ambiguity the term holds significance for. But with the good days promised eluding the common man from the time it has been professed it does appear that the ‘achche din’ is a euphemism that describes the joy at having assumed power for the ruling dispensation at the center – and after a relatively long struggle at that!
With the sort of rancor witnessed over the slew of economic reforms effected, the common man has been the worst sufferer who now realizes his folly of endorsing a party which has eventually proved that when it comes to advocating pro-people legislations, it has nothing popular about it.
We are once again in an election-year! The air will soon be reverberating with poll-cries of ‘If elected, I promise’. I am reminded of one of Adolph Hitler’s grand lines: “Make the lie big, make it simple, keep saying it, and eventually they will believe it!”
