The dirty face of office politics

I am sure all of us would have, at some point, suffered coworkers, who would never give up trying to make our lives difficult. I can think of a couple of reasons - inferiority complex, jealousy, and inflated ego.

An ex-colleague of mine deleted my folder conaining all my work files, without leaving any trace. The back up did not include the recent files, leaving me to redo a lot of work. This is actually not that bad. A friend of mine was given wrong address and telephone numbers when she was travelling.

Another one, you can say, the less harmful one, is perhaps someone who makes it a point to inform the boss even if you sneeze in your cabin. Actually, some bosses seem to encourage that. In a company where I worked before, a colleaque was always complaining to the boss about me. I wondered if I should explain my side of the story. Then I decided against it. I thought, to have reached this level, the boss must be an intelligent person. Surely he has an idea about who is capable of what. I thought I should rather concentrate on work rather than give undue importance to some undeserving person. But, I must admit, it hasn't always beeen easy.

There is yet another category. They are the gossip mongers. They always give you information such as who the boss is currently seeing, a colleague getting a huge hike and all kinds of news. As a rule, they have no favourites. They simply latch on to anyone temporarily. The next moment they go back to the opposite camp to vomit all the juicy news.

Sometimes politics totally transforms the office atmosphere. It gets as bad as swimming in crocodile infested waters. Not only that you need to swim, you also need to avoid crocodiles. You'd better be good at both!

The variety entertainment called elections

Elections are around the corner. Take a look at the streets and you will know that. There are huge hoardings put up on both sides of the road. We can see politicians with folded arms looking down at us from these illegal hoardings. I find this disgusting. Some of these simply block the traffic signals.

There are also huge structures erected across the road. These are certainly illegal. They look crude and are dangerous as well as they reduce visibility around the corners. These political parties should be punished for these illegal hoardings, which deface the city. Perhaps people should decide that they would never cast their so called precious vote for any party that erects such hoardings and throws promotional material all around.

The election season is not actually all that bad, it is fun time also. Really! Listen to how they act, what they say, and the blame game-the war of the words. It is variety entertainment!

Like you see in the photo on the right, politicians only smile from these hoardings. Life goes on as usual. Nothing changes and no one really cares!

I hope this time there will be negative voting. At least we can at least be honest with ourselves!

Protecting India from terrorism

The question here is not who will bell the cat, but how can we bell the cat. Terrorism sure needs to be destroyed from its roots, which are of course is in Pakistan. Many people who spoke to the media during the Mumbai attacks mentioned “War”. It may sound good if it is just an empty threat to Pakistan. If it helps frighten Pakistan president Asif Ali Zardari, fine. More than that, I am not too sure. Read any literature on war, no one has really benefited. Do we really want to destroy that country? If we have to fight Pakistan to destroy the terrorists, it’s like burning down a house to kill the rats.

There must be other ways to kill the rats. Pakistan surely did all it can to initiate, support, and groom terrorism. Then it grew out of control. Even if he wishes to, Zardari does not seem to have any power to put an end to terrorism. He has no teeth to bite. He does not even seem to have the strength to bark. He may be under threat. From the history of Pakistan we know what has happened of all rulers. Surely he knows their might and cannot displease them even at the cost of incurring the wrath of other countries.

What choice does India really have now? The only option may be to get the support of other powerful nations, which can push Zardari into doing something. That too very soon, while others may still be ready to help. US support sure has shaken Zardari. Banning some terrorist outfit may not help at all. They will soon change the name. What’s there in a name after all?

While India may be helpless about tackling the terrorists in Pak, it sure can do a lot in its own soil. Terrorists are able to infiltrate only because of security lapses. Seal all loopholes! Do not allow the government take the focus away from their inefficiency by blaming Pakistan. All of this again boils down to having a strong government in India. A government whose priority is the security of the nation, rather than the security of their own chair, is the need of the hour.

A new political party and its future

Everyone has their own idea of what an ideal political party should be. The idea of forming such a party with support from like-minded people has crossed many minds. Sounds good. Of course, I too would like to support a good cause.

Power corrupts man
Absolute power corrupts absolutely!

Many of the existing political parties started off like this -- There was a situation, which needed repair. People joined hands to form a political union, which helped them overcome it. Time passed and party saw several leaders. By then, the situation that necessitated the party no longer existed. The urgency was gone. The ideals, which the party stood for perhaps was no longer relevant. People tend to stick to rules and policies, without realizing they too need to adapt to new needs posed by the new situations. The party now becomes ineffective. Absence of any change makes it stale. It becomes just another party.

Founders of many of the existing partners may be turning in their graves, unable to contain what has happened of their parties. Ever wondered what the founders would tell their parties’ new leaders? Food for thought!

How much time would a new party take to reach this stage? While a new party can be useful in the short term, would people who form a party look at its long term implications also? Form a new party or a union if only it will not be adding to the long list of brain-dead political parties.

Bollywood advocates black bands

Our stars on earth are wearing black bands to express their solidarity. They want all Indians to wear black bands too. People can wear black bands and feel that they have done something for their fellow beings and the country. People can light candles too. Is that all India needs now?

With due respect to our Bollywood stars, why do media want “sound” bytes from the stars? Our stars are so good at their work. We really enjoy watching their movies. There it ends. There are very few Bollywood stars who have made any significant contribution to the society, other than wearing bands. If they are ready to take it further from there and try and do something meaningful for the society, hats off to them.

Media should be trying to do something meaningful, such as talking to people who can really make a difference. What’s the next step? What can we do to prevent terrorist attacks? How can we be better prepared? How can we help the victims? Media does have a higher responsibility than trying to snatch away their share of the celebrities’ limelight.

I hope media will stop regurgitating the clichéd “resilience of Mumbai”. They did move on, and quite remarkably. Should they be allowed to be hit just because they bounce back? We have in us the spirit to fight against all odds till the last breath. Even when the limbs of a human being are cut off, he would still try to crawl, until there is the last trace of life in him. It does not mean he should be subjected to such horrors repeatedly, until he cannot go on.

There are many lesser mortals who have braved the terrorists to help others. What about the hotel staff and many others? Media can play an important role by not letting the government forget them.

There is absolutely no reason for Muslims to feel others will suspect them or blame them for belonging to the religion. No one would ever say so. It was an attack on Indians, not any community. All fingers were pointed at the government for its inability to act.

Vote "only" for an eligible candidate

Come elections, the media comes alive with recommendations for the citizens to exercise their highly acclaimed “right to vote”. Celebrities and politicians make the citizens understand that it is a sin to abstain from voting. This is the only way we can participate in democracy. The only way to ensure we have a say in what’s going on in our country. Through our representatives, we rule our country. “By the people, for the people, of the people”. This is nothing short of heaven.

Wake up from the dream! Recollect your experience at the last elections. This is a sample—my experience. We live in a residential layout. We didn’t have water supply. We had tankers supplying water. People in the layout approached the councillor for help. Nothing happened. Later, someone informed us that this person owned many tanker lorries supplying water. Providing regular water supply would of course affect his business.

Another politician promised water. There was an election, I don’t recollect which one (I am not so politics savvy), but he was elected. But no water again. He said, “You didn’t vote for me. I won because of votes by the other layout”. So water flowed in that direction. How did he know for whom we had voted? I thought voting was a confidential affair.

Then came the main elections. We want water! I looked at the list of candidates in our constituency. I thought no one was worth my vote. Then someone said, “The…candidate will give us water”. Of course I had to vote for someone. At the polling booth their representatives were scanning the people who turned up for voting. Can we demand that parties produce candidates who are worth our votes? Is there a way citizens can turn down unworthy candidates?

There needs to be an option where citizens can vote to disqualify a candidate. How about an option to bar the party from next elections if its candidate was disqualified? Wistful thinking! This might perhaps make parties choose a worthy representative. We should not be happy choosing A, B, C or D. If the answer is “None of the above”, that option should also be provided. WE have a duty towards our country. That’s not simply staining our finger.

Politicians want them all

A former prime minister recently registered his anger against the public outcry against politicians. He wanted to know how the country could go forward without politicians. He said politicians were indispensable for the public, who perhaps failed to understand that.

Following the recent terrorist attack on Mumbai, almost every section of the society joined hands in blaming the politicians. Some of the politicians demanded additional security for themselves. An average Indian has many questions to ask. A farmer is indispensable to our country. He sows and reaps the grains that reach our dining table. A bank clerk is indispensable, so is a school teacher. How about the traffic policeman, who braves the scorching sun and freezing winter without adequate protection? How about the army personnel guarding our borders?

If they are indispensable, what makes a politician’s life more important? Why do they consider themselves more eligible for security, which is not provided to the common man? Is it because they are “common”? From whom should they be protected? How much money is actually lost from the exchequer towards security? Do all of them require such high levels of security? Politicians are more equal I guess!

Which politician would be willing to face the enemy forces in a war? Would they order a war if they had to? Would a transport minister be willing to travel in his own fleet of buses? Would he travel by these buses to work every day? If so, he can complain about people using private transport. Would an education minister send his children to vernacular government schools?

The army and police forces are ready to face any danger as part of their duty. But should they necessarily die? Aren’t they human? Don’t they have hopes and dreams like others? They are also husbands, brothers and sons like the others. A precious life should be scarified if only it is absolutely necessary.

Had intelligence done their duty, many lives could have been saved. Politicians have the power to tighten the strings. But what is top priority for them? Winning brownie points for next elections? Is it unfair to demand that politicians give back at least a small percentage of what they take from the common man?