Dr. Asangba Tzüdir
'Not an option, but basic right'
Good governance is an indeterminate term used in the international development literature to describe how public institutions conduct public affairs and manage public resources. Good governance means that the processes and institutions produce results that meet the needs of society while making the best use of resources at their disposal. It is an approach of government that is committed to creating a system founded in justice and peace that protects individual’s human rights and civil liberties. It is in this context that the term ‘good governance’ is generally understood. But, one may wonder whether it was in this context when Chief Minister Rio stated that “Good governance is not an option for governments but a basic right for all citizens; and the government is duty bound to provide it.”
In principle it shows promise and gives hope, but considering the contradictory reality, his statement brings both hope and despair. Hope, because such statement is an acknowledgement and also an honest confession that our society is in desperate need of good governance and an honest encounter with truth. On the flip, it creates despair because such ‘beautiful proclamations that becomes headliners’ have become a routine affair and makes one think if it will be just another meaningless concealment beneath its deceptive rhetoric made more pronounced by the existing state of affairs.
The crumbling infrastructure is a simple testament that, good governance as a basic right is being denied. To add to the woes, the recent news report of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India where 340 projects lying incomplete under different govt departments involving an expenditure of Rs. 2,030.18 crore despite the work stipulation that the projects should have been completed by March 31, 2017, only heightens the case that the government is not fully committed towards providing basic rights of the people and a failure of their bounden duty. The consequences are such that, failure to complete in the stipulated time not only leads to escalation of the cost of work but also stalls the project that may not see completion and the intended beneficiaries are made to suffer.
Now, the state is gearing up to implement rooftop solar project, and unless there is good governance that ensures not only completion but also sustainability, the public is not going to enjoy the benefits of such projects. Rhetorically, good governance in the aspect of development should begin by tightening all the ‘screws’ and plugging in the ‘safety valves’ to prevent leakage from top to the bottom.
Another segment that requires good governance is in the areas of employment. Well, the increasing number of ‘educated unemployed’ youths has also pushed the need for creation of more jobs and various posts. But good governance is not about creating posts (front door and back door) knowing there are excesses, rather create self-employment opportunities by providing various sustainable avenues for the youths to make a life and living out of it. Having a viable justice and legal system is a sign of good governance, the lack of it has only increased its burden. An instance of it being, women continue to live under the shadow of sexual violence and where the ‘voices of the sexually oppressed’ remain silenced.
With advancement in technology, it should be practically engaged to help expedite the various ‘work processes’ and thereby improve good governance. Certain efforts have been seen but it should not be simply applied for book keeping sake but should reach out to people to keep the masses informed, help avail the benefits and facilities, and also provide a sense of direction about where the government is heading.
These are just some instances and indeed, it is time for the government to go beyond good governance as an option and make it into a basic right. On the whole, good governance requires having good policies of governance that creates in place a tangible and sustainable ‘governmental system’ that goes beyond ‘governing’ by addressing the rights and welfare of the people by way of harnessing all forms of resources including human resources. At the end, the goal of good governance, transparency and building a just and equitable society calls for a collective responsibility. Any effort towards good governance can be easily defeated when a ‘person’ loosens a ‘screw’ or unplugs a ‘safety valve’ or by inflating and putting magic into ‘numbers.’
(Dr. Asangba Tzudir is a Freelance Editing and Research Consultant. He contributes a weekly guest editorial to The Morung Express. Comments can be mailed to asangtz@gmail.com)
