Top 10 myths about the anti-corruption movement
Outside Edge
Pran Kurup
Tuesday December 27, 2011, 06:46 AM
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A number of myths have been propagated over the past year about the anti-corruption movement ranging from crafty attempts to derail the movement to gross mis-representation.
1. It is anti-Congress: Those in the Congress (and unfortunately many among the general public) believe that the anti-corruption movement is against the Congress. The Hissar election is often cited as an example. The reality is that the Congress party is in power today as the head of the UPA and wields enough power to pass this bill provided it can muster the required leadership and sheer “backbone” needed to carry along its allies. Unfortunately, there isn’t consensus in the Congress. Many in the Congress starting at the very top shudder at the thought of an independent investigative body and simply can’t come to terms with the idea. The anti-Congress label is an escape route with no basis. An party in power that is unwilling to pass a strong anti-corruption bill would have faced identical protests.
2. It is pro-BJP: If you are against the Congress you are pro-BJP is the automatic conclusion but also an unfortunate gross mis-representation. Team Anna has criticized the BJP governments in Gujarat and Karnataka, to mention a couple of their anti-BJP moves. The fact that BJP participated in an anti-corruption rally organized by Team Anna does not in any way confirm their BJP links. The rally was open to all parties including the Congress party. Sharing a dais does not equate to being idealogical bedfellows.
3. It is anti-reservation: While it is true that the Jan Lokpal draft did not include the idea of reservation, it is consistent with laws surrounding all the other similar organizations like the CBI, CVC, CEC, CAG etc. Team Anna has said that they are in no way opposed to reservation and all their care about it is an open, transparent setup with the appropriate checks and balances. Using the reservation card is a crafty attempt to divide and conquer while diverting attention from the core issue.
4. It is inflexible: This is easily the most widely believed myth. While it is true that democracy is about compromise and dialogue, you can’t dub someone as being inflexible unless you sit down and negotiate with them. Also, for a negotiation to be fruitful both parties should know exactly what they want. While Team Anna has been crystal clear on its stance on the bill, the ruling party has no clear consensus as reinforced by its constant waffling on various issues as witnessed from the joint drafting committee, to its first version, to the parliamentary resolution, to the standing committee, to its latest version tabled in parliament. The media unfortunately has failed to hold the UPA government accountable on this issue and instead perpetuated this myth.
5. It does not represent the people: Firstly, such a claim has never made. In fact, it is the government that the gave Team Anna the legitimacy by forming a joint drafting committee. The long sustained campaign has continued to spread and gain its supporters and every show of strength has proven that an even larger cross-section of the people are increasingly with Team Anna.
6. Suo Motu powers for Lokpal is dangerous: At the surface, this might ring true. However, the fact remains that all other similar organizations like the CBI, CVC, IT department, to name a few have suo motu powers. So if this is cause for “chest beating” then perhaps its time to re-visit similar powers for other such organizations. In general, harmful effects of suo motu powers can be eliminated with the right checks and balances in the bill.
7. Let us first pass a preliminary version of the bill: Surprisingly, some among the educated class have started to believe in this myth. It is important to realize that a strong foundation for such a law is a must to begin with in order for it to be refined in the future. Secondly, here is no greater evidence than this long drawn out struggle for Lokpal bill to justify the need for us to get it right the first time.
8. Passing a bill will solve corruption: This is a popular myth cited by many opponents of the bill. Firstly, no one ever claimed that passing Lokpal bill will signal the end of corruption. It is only a law and not a magic wand! But the important thing to bear in mind is that the purpose of a strong law is to have a mechanism in place to punish the guilty and to simultaneously act as a deterrent for future acts of corruption. We have had so many scams that have been exposed in recent times and yet justice has not been served for the simple reason that there is no independent, empowered, investigative agency to get to the bottom of these cases.
9. Team Anna should run for elections before it can demand laws: It is incorrect to question the authority of any individual or group to challenge the government and campaign for a law because they are not democratically elected. Anyone and everyone in a democracy is free to protest peacefully.
10. Parliament is supreme: The anti-corruption movement has never claimed its legitimacy to make laws or questioned parliament's law-making authority. In fact, we should commend them for doing the hard work of drafting a law (after incorporating feedback via the Internet, through public consultations etc.) that our parliamentarians should ideally be doing themselves. Besides, they deserve all the credit for having started a national dialogue and discussion on the issue of corruption. While it is true that law-making is the responsibility of parliament, it is also undeniable that it draws it strength from the people, and hence the people are ultimately supreme.
You can follow Pran's tweets at http://twitter.com/pkurup
Pran Kurup
Tuesday December 27, 2011, 06:46 AM
===============================================
A number of myths have been propagated over the past year about the anti-corruption movement ranging from crafty attempts to derail the movement to gross mis-representation.
1. It is anti-Congress: Those in the Congress (and unfortunately many among the general public) believe that the anti-corruption movement is against the Congress. The Hissar election is often cited as an example. The reality is that the Congress party is in power today as the head of the UPA and wields enough power to pass this bill provided it can muster the required leadership and sheer “backbone” needed to carry along its allies. Unfortunately, there isn’t consensus in the Congress. Many in the Congress starting at the very top shudder at the thought of an independent investigative body and simply can’t come to terms with the idea. The anti-Congress label is an escape route with no basis. An party in power that is unwilling to pass a strong anti-corruption bill would have faced identical protests.
2. It is pro-BJP: If you are against the Congress you are pro-BJP is the automatic conclusion but also an unfortunate gross mis-representation. Team Anna has criticized the BJP governments in Gujarat and Karnataka, to mention a couple of their anti-BJP moves. The fact that BJP participated in an anti-corruption rally organized by Team Anna does not in any way confirm their BJP links. The rally was open to all parties including the Congress party. Sharing a dais does not equate to being idealogical bedfellows.
3. It is anti-reservation: While it is true that the Jan Lokpal draft did not include the idea of reservation, it is consistent with laws surrounding all the other similar organizations like the CBI, CVC, CEC, CAG etc. Team Anna has said that they are in no way opposed to reservation and all their care about it is an open, transparent setup with the appropriate checks and balances. Using the reservation card is a crafty attempt to divide and conquer while diverting attention from the core issue.
4. It is inflexible: This is easily the most widely believed myth. While it is true that democracy is about compromise and dialogue, you can’t dub someone as being inflexible unless you sit down and negotiate with them. Also, for a negotiation to be fruitful both parties should know exactly what they want. While Team Anna has been crystal clear on its stance on the bill, the ruling party has no clear consensus as reinforced by its constant waffling on various issues as witnessed from the joint drafting committee, to its first version, to the parliamentary resolution, to the standing committee, to its latest version tabled in parliament. The media unfortunately has failed to hold the UPA government accountable on this issue and instead perpetuated this myth.
5. It does not represent the people: Firstly, such a claim has never made. In fact, it is the government that the gave Team Anna the legitimacy by forming a joint drafting committee. The long sustained campaign has continued to spread and gain its supporters and every show of strength has proven that an even larger cross-section of the people are increasingly with Team Anna.
6. Suo Motu powers for Lokpal is dangerous: At the surface, this might ring true. However, the fact remains that all other similar organizations like the CBI, CVC, IT department, to name a few have suo motu powers. So if this is cause for “chest beating” then perhaps its time to re-visit similar powers for other such organizations. In general, harmful effects of suo motu powers can be eliminated with the right checks and balances in the bill.
7. Let us first pass a preliminary version of the bill: Surprisingly, some among the educated class have started to believe in this myth. It is important to realize that a strong foundation for such a law is a must to begin with in order for it to be refined in the future. Secondly, here is no greater evidence than this long drawn out struggle for Lokpal bill to justify the need for us to get it right the first time.
8. Passing a bill will solve corruption: This is a popular myth cited by many opponents of the bill. Firstly, no one ever claimed that passing Lokpal bill will signal the end of corruption. It is only a law and not a magic wand! But the important thing to bear in mind is that the purpose of a strong law is to have a mechanism in place to punish the guilty and to simultaneously act as a deterrent for future acts of corruption. We have had so many scams that have been exposed in recent times and yet justice has not been served for the simple reason that there is no independent, empowered, investigative agency to get to the bottom of these cases.
9. Team Anna should run for elections before it can demand laws: It is incorrect to question the authority of any individual or group to challenge the government and campaign for a law because they are not democratically elected. Anyone and everyone in a democracy is free to protest peacefully.
10. Parliament is supreme: The anti-corruption movement has never claimed its legitimacy to make laws or questioned parliament's law-making authority. In fact, we should commend them for doing the hard work of drafting a law (after incorporating feedback via the Internet, through public consultations etc.) that our parliamentarians should ideally be doing themselves. Besides, they deserve all the credit for having started a national dialogue and discussion on the issue of corruption. While it is true that law-making is the responsibility of parliament, it is also undeniable that it draws it strength from the people, and hence the people are ultimately supreme.
You can follow Pran's tweets at http://twitter.com/pkurup
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