Right to Sack MLAs
Leader writer: Jagjit T
With elections to constitute the 8th Manipur Legislative Assembly due to be held in less than a
month, it is inevitable to ask what we can expect from the new MLAs who will be elected. Would the new Assembly be full of the same old faces up to the same old tricks, or would there be new faces to breath new life into Manipuri politics? It is not a good sign that most of the old MLAs of the 7th Manipur Assembly have been renominated this time round.
Events on June 18 and after, and those leading up to it, will definitely have an impact on this election, but it is difficult to predict how far. The old MLAs suffer from the disadvantage of the notoriety they gained in public memory for their shameless and undignified political shenanigans in the past two years that led to the fall of two governments and the imposition of President's Rule, leading inevitably to the tragic events of June 18 and its aftermath, and their cowardly and selfish behavior during the movement against the threat to Manipur's territorial integrity.
Their advantage is that they will be facing off in most cases against political greenhorns. The newly formed Democratic People's Party has as its agenda the express purpose of kicking established politicians out of public life, but most of its candidates remain too much as unknown entities. Public memory is short, moreover, and given the cynicism with which politics is regarded, it is quite possible that our politicians will be able to convince the voting public, by hook or by crook, that they have turned over a new leaf, or at least to forget their antics of the past. Greater miracles have been performed, after all.
History shows that self-interest and lust for power is the life-blood of Manipuri politics, and all indications are that the 8th Manipur Legislative Assembly will be but a replay of its predecessors. The party-hopping spree we have seen in the past three or four months is enough indication that our politicians have still not learnt their lessons. Campaigning thus far have been rather low-key, but most candidates have been trotting out the same old empty promises, while there has been no change in the vituperative tone of the battles of words between political opponents.
Unlike in the run-up to the last general elections, political parties this time round have been rather coy about seeking political alliances, but most have said that the doors are open for post-poll alliances. Given the likelihood that no party will be able to get a majority on its own, that sets the stage for further political uncertainty, not to speak of some more bouts of our MLAs doing what they love best - party hopping and jockeying for power.
The Anti-Defection Law has been worse then useless in curbing our incorrigible politicians. If anything, the 'one-third' clause has only meant that the defection of more MLAs of a particular party has to be secured - not that big a problem, considering the unscrupulous nature of our politicians and the burgeoning war chests of most political parties. The political antics last year that led to the fall of the Radhabinod Koijam government should have been enough to bespeak the need for an overhaul of the Anti-Defection Law to make floor crossing an impossibility.
A further measure to prevent the kind of political excesses that our MLAs have indulged in the past would be to give the public the right to recall those representatives they are not satisfied with. Wishful thinking? Perhaps, but the 'right to recall' has been implemented experimentally at the gram panchayat level in some states, and by all accounts it has been a success. Giving the people of Manipur the right to recall would be simply to repeat that experiment on a larger scale.
(Courtesy: The Imphal Free Press) |
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