Wednesday, December 28, 2011

'What do you want of me, Lokpal?!'

Some of us believe we can initiate a change and some of us believe that no matter what we do, this country isn’t going to change. Though clearly, both these stands seem to be diametrical opposites, they have something in common … both stands DO NOT DENY THE NEED FOR CHANGE. So in other words, it looks like, that though we all BELIEVE things need to change, but we might not BELIEVE our collective efforts might be powerful enough to initiate or sustain a change.
“This movement believes in making a change. “ -  Nope, this movement is only a stage , a platform to EXPRESS THE NEED FOR CHANGE. Remember that no matter whether we believe this will bring about change or not, we all DO NOT DENY THE NEED FOR IT. In effect, ‘making a change’ is a consequence the movement is working towards – we might succeed or fail in doing so.  All that this movement asks of us, is to EXPRESS our belief that change is necessary. Let us not judge the consequence without putting some effort towards expressing ourselves.
Any stage/platform needs audience and performers… this movement has set the stage, it has a well-defined audience - the politicians and bureaucrats, now it’s left to us, the performers, the citizens of this country to stand together and use this stage to express our beliefs about ‘change’ despite our disagreements on the ‘consequence’. Remember, the last few months are witness that the audience is paying attention. It has brought them to bringing about a change that they have been putting off for almost half a century.
Passing of  a bill only acknowledges the fact that we have been heard, but does it mean that the audience has been listening? Only the contents of the bill can confirm that. Go through the details of the Lokpal Bill the government is proposing to pass, make your own opinion of its effectiveness and inadequacies. Decide for yourself if what the government is offering can result in sustainable change. Are you satisfied with their offering?
If you feel its not good enough, go ahead and let the decision makers know we want sustainable change. And a strong law, devoid of accommodations and loop holes is the only true path towards sustainable change.