Total Commitment Needs Full Participation
Democracy can never be meaningful without full participation of all the peoples within a democratic unit, i.e. constituency. Ways and means have to be found to ensure that most of the population gets involved, at least in the lowest tiers, or what is now commonly called the grassroots level. Among the registered voters in Pakistan there is a 54% men-46% women ratio even though the present population count says the ratio is 48% men-52% women. The number of seats that are taken up by women in every tier of democratic participation is not only negligible, it is almost non-existent. That is a non-starter for democracy. The National Reconstruction Bureau (NRB) has proposed that there may be an equal number of seats upto the District Assembly, one feels it would be almost impossible to find credible women candidates to stand upto the electoral test for several years yet unless we use “force-feed” methods. For the purpose of giving women an equal voice in our democracy one proposes that we use the “running mate” formula not only at the grassroots level but up the tiers right upto the Senate. The formula is simple, if a male candidate stands for election, he will have with him as a running mate a woman, and vice versa if a woman is the candidate she will have a male as the “running mate”. Off course there has to be some pre-qualification for such candidates. Both men and women can compete on equal footing, the “coattail effect” will ensure that both the sexes will have equal number of seats on the Councils or the Assemblies. It has to be accepted that such a system will favour women deliberately so as to obtain equal participation by (and for) them, a must for meaningful democracy.
Democracy means effective governance from the grassroots level to the uppermost tier by representatives of the people elected by the people in a fair and transparent process that is all inclusive, i.e. it tries to accommodate every segment of the population and unify them though the electoral process. This verification will cut through ethnicity, sects, caste, etc. One of the best decisions taken so far is to have elections on a run-off basis i.e. the winning candidate must get 50% or more votes in the first round or there will be a second round between those two who got the maximum votes in the first round to establish the outright winner. Those voting thus have a clear choice, concurrently this breeds homogeneity since a coalition of interests must unite to either (1) elect a candidate in a positive display of their strength or (2) by a negative show of their preference they band together to keep a candidate they do not want out of the electoral process. Run-off elections encourage unity in an indirect method. Self-interest cuts against the ambitions of “special interest groups” who band together with different groups for a common purpose even though their views otherwise may be in divergence. In other words those with interests more common to each other will cause together out of a common cause.
Of, For and By
The people” has been deliberately left out of the headline, in third world countries the people in any case have nothing to do with the type of democracy envisaged by US President Abraham Lincoln in his Gettysburg Address. Producing a detailed concept in only 100 days plus to get government (as we know and experience it) off the backs of the people and into their hands at the grassroots level is a tall order. The Chief Executive’s (CE) announcement on March 23 outlining a framework for a Local Government of the people, for the people and by the people notwithstanding, any radical changes in the system need to be tested for chinks in the armour before being implemented. Conducting a debate with a wide cross-section of the intelligentsia in roadshows throughout the country, Lt. Gen. (Retd) Tanvir Naqvi, Chairman of the National Reconstruction Bureau (NRB), has been soliciting concrete suggestions. An environment of candour permitted the meetings to cover good ground, a number of changes were recommended. Refreshingly the NRB Chief was quite receptive to creative and pragmatic ideas, and not defensive about the NRB’s proposed Local Government structure and working. Some criticism not only bordered on the ridiculous but was without substance, that most of the protest came from retired civil servants was to be expected. Their being less than civil in some cases was uncalled for, smacking of the desperation the bureaucracy must feel at being deprived of the monarchical authority and status they have enjoyed as a virtually untouchable and privileged ruling class for over 50 years.
Black Holes in Revenue Gathering
A recent survey conducted by a research company assisting in the TV Licence Fee Campaign 1998-99 PROJECT VIEWFINDER is very revealing. In the first two months of the campaign, 27% of the people belonging to low-income group area had purchased TV licences whereas 14% of those classified as middle income group and less than 6% of the affluent group had done so. In areas like Defence Housing Authority Karachi, out of 50 houses on one street, nearly every house having a Dish Antenna, only 2 had obtained TV licences and even they had not paid for the Dish Antenna. Amazing as it may seem but those who can afford to spend Rs 250 for a single sandwich at one of the mushrooming fast food outlets are averse to paying Rs.250 as annual fees for a TV licence. On the other hand, at the other extreme the poverty stricken, and this includes the rest of the middle class in the present economic environment, are far more responsible with respect to their public obligations. If you study the proportionate value of the licence fee to the annual earnings of the low-income group and compare it with that of the affluent, the factor of greed and indifference to civic responsibilities among the well-to-do is unimaginable. Analysing the wide discrepancy the company concerned came up with some startling findings, among them viz, (1) those on the poverty line are very concerned about socio-economic facilities, as such they tend to fulfil their obligations far more than the higher income group who take it as a God-given right, their conscience feeling no responsibility towards paying their dues to the State and its agencies (2) the poor income group fear the threat of court summons and police involvement whereas the affluent have no fear of either (3) for the poor the TV licences is another piece of documentation as proof of ownership and occupation of their house while the rich want to avoid such documentation and (4) the prize draw scheme attracts the poor but causes little or no excitement for the affluent who already possess whatever is on offer. These observations are a shameful reminder of the sad lack of social conscience among the affluent. As the last day before penalties and surcharges are applicable approaches, the announcements on TV and print media, encouraging TV set holders to purchase licence, have become slightly tougher in tone. One of the solutions proposed by the collection agencies is also revealing, lists of defaulters are being prepared which are intended to be published in local newspapers. Court summons are also being readied to be sent in an inverse ratio to purchases, affluent income group 10, middle income group 3 and 1 for low income group. Most of those who default, particularly in the affluent group, will probably end up paying even 10-15 times more than the original sum other than the embarrassment and the unnecessary time consumed between court, bailiffs, police station and bank. That experience should be a powerful enough incentive to dissuade them from avoiding taxes and duties in the future, at least the dues against utilities.
Most of this country’s problems stem from the fact that those who have gained most from the largesse of the State do not want to pay taxes but evade them by relying on “bribes and connections” to escape the clutches of the law. The fact that only 1 million or so souls are registered as taxpayers, mostly the salaried class, is a disgrace. At least 3-4 million more taxpayers are evading registration, every one million taxpayer means Rs 100 billion approximately to the exchequer. This is a staggering Rs 300-400 billion direct loss to the public exchequer, more than the debt repayments, defence expenditure and cost of running government all put together. Similarly as regards Sales Tax registration and Central Excise Duty, the evasion is staggering. In Rawalpindi Sales Tax Region alone, over 9,000 units of coal mines, stone crushers and brick manufacturers are not registered, each capable of paying Rs 100,000 annually at the very minimum. This amounts to an evasion of Rs 9 billion. However with the active connivance of tax enforcers, Rs.7,000 per month per unit for NOT registering (a cool approximate Rs.60 million a month or Rs.72 crores per year), very few of the units, if any, are registered and those that are, hardly pay 5% of what they should. The present GST issue is an outrage perpetrated by the PM’s favourite constituency, the retailer business community. Retail shops in all the markets are stocked full of goods, to survive the smallest shop must sell not less than Rs 1,000 per day, in Liberty Market Lahore sales are nearly Rs 3-4 million a day. Similarly jewellery shops sell as much as Rs 5-6 million a day, if not many multiple amounts more. Yet these traders refuse blatantly, not only to pay a fraction of what is actually leviable but refuse to get registered at all. Brazen-faced about their defiance, they are holding the PM and the country to ransom by holding strikes regularly, denying consumers access to necessary consumer items. Rather than succumbing to threats and blackmail, the government should withdraw “law and order” cover from those who do not get registered as well as banning issuance of arms licences to them. If their shops and houses are looted or vandalised, their FIR should not be registered at any Police Station if they are not registered as GST payers. Furthermore one can only assess the amount looted if the GST declaration gives an approximate value. In the same manner what is the proof you own a TV set or VCR unless you have a valid licence? Without the requisite licences they cannot be included in the list of stolen items. This may seem an invitation to loot, anyone who does not subscribe financially to the public exchequer towards maintaining of police cover does not deserve to be secured or protected by the State and that also at the expense of others who pay their dues. The State may well look after them as private citizens but as professionals and their place of work thereof can only fall under the ambit of the State when they start paying their taxes. Moreover the citizenry should be encouraged not to purchase any item from them unless they are registered —and paying GST.
Imperfect Democracy, Insoluble Problems
Any exercise in democracy without the participation of the people at the grassroots level is an exercise in futility. Democracy enjoins the continuous freedoms of expression and action, the process does not end by simply exercising the right to vote and giving away a mandate for the leaders to administer. Above all, only the absolute majority formed by that vote in any entity, may it be a constituency or the entire country, have a right to exercise that mandate. When a mandate is exercised by a minority faction having a majority due to an imperfect system as is usually the case, problems not only proliferate they multiply. The inter-action of insoluble problems in turn leads to disunity as each minority faction bands together in a bid for power and when they cannot get that power then out of sheer frustration, they try to secede from the union.
While nothing in life can really be perfect, unless we try and make our exercise in democracy close to near perfect, at least at the grassroots level, we may cease to exist as a nation. The aspiration for excellence can happen as an evolution of the present mandate i.e. if the rulers set about their task in a concerted manner and not spend their entire energies in seeking longevity. For the existence of the nation a period of authoritarian rule may well be necessary, it is better to have that rule than cease to exist as a national entity. There is a dire need to reform the system, particularly the electoral process. The idea should be to ensure that every individual in the country must feel that his or her participation is important and constant, that after exercising the vote once every four years, he or she does not become meaningless, at least till the next elections come around. This can only be done by making a pragmatic nation-structure that does not give lip-service only to democracy but inculcates the modicum of accountability that democracy enjoins along a broad spectrum at the very base of the system.
A Concept in Cooperation
The essence of society as we understand it is that it is based on cooperation and understanding between individuals and like-minded groups. Human beings have an inherent penchant to extend help to other human beings and in the ultimate analysis even the basis for Islamic society is mutual cooperation on a comprehensive basis laid down in detail in the Holy Quran. While all this may be natural, the successful harnessing of the cooperative instinct for material benefits and the consolidation of this process along organised, scientific lines is the basis for Cooperative Societies. At the very basics, Cooperatives can be extremely helpful to those that don’t have the inherent ability for either entering into entrepreneurship of any kind or if the ability is there, to expand the scope of its horizons, whether it be in business, industry or in the agriculture sectors. It is an all-inclusive benefit scheme meant mainly for the have-nots of society. Being an agriculture-based economy, Pakistan’s main thrust in the Cooperative field has been in farming and the imperative need to create a suitable monetary system to ensure desperately needed adequate cash flow to the small-unit subsistence farmer.