Government sans governance is unimaginable

Suresh Kumar

Chief principal secretary to Punjab CM

William Boyer, an American political scientist, defined governance as the action of governments plus its interaction with non-governmental partners in the process of governing — their collective relationship, the economy, and public policy. It is a collaborative process within a set of predefined laws and rules, enunciating public policies.

India is, perhaps, one of the few countries with a comprehensively written Constitution, leaving little, if any, scope for its non-compliance. It defines the framework of public policy and governance by governments. With the changing realities over time, the Indian Constitution has seen amendments over 100 times. But, its basic character remains unchanged, making it a most dynamic document that has withstood the vicissitudes of politics of all shades.

Governments, if they function following constitutional proprieties, will deliver good governance. They shall check deviations and variations from the law. For, if they start ignoring the rules of law, why would the people need them? There can, thus, be governance without a government, but the converse is not true and is unimaginable.

In the past three decades, irrespective of their political character, some of the governments did things, some of which were beyond the constitutional limits, to meet their personal and political goals. The public essence of these political establishments was missing, and their capabilities to manage and lead the bureaucratic set-up stood suspect.

These days, the basics of governance are amiss more often than expected owing to the ambitions and greed of a few. The common man suffers and those in power attempt to bribe him through subsidies, freebies and doles, to hide their sins and incapabilities. The core issues of education, healthcare, employment and basic amenities, required for an improved living, are less focused goals of governments. Education and jobs, if assured and ensured as basic rights of the citizens, will minimise the need to provide doles.

A recent trend is to mislead the common man through false and unsubstantiated information through social media, which remains largely unregulated on the pretext of freedom of speech. Surely, freedom of speech does not mean freedom to lie and mislead or create divisions and unrest in society. A statutory code of conduct to ensure discipline in social media and the written law of torts is necessary for a cohesive and an informed socio-economic growth.

A rise in generational aspirations is natural, and the system has to evolve to meet them. For this, information, education and communication have to improve with modern techniques. Governmental efforts to suppress rising aspirations through traditional or outdated methods, and even tricks, most of which are not considered credible anymore, seem to be doing more damage than imagined. Ignoring the stakeholders’ consultation for any contemplated government policy or action and suppressing the common man with the use of State’s power will not help. It may sharpen and deepen divisions in society.

The slow rise in maturity and inadequate understanding of and attention to the requirements of nation-building are other discernible features of our new crop of politics and bureaucracy. Instead of guiding the officialdom to rise and work for the nation, the politicians prefer to deepen the spoils system for their immediate and personal gains. Not many try to understand governance, though they are quick to promote those who take refuge in leakages and pilferages in the government. A person discredited with squandering billions of public money can get away with just one godfather who has clout in the corridors of power.

The decline in governance is so sharp, that those in power do not hesitate to defend and protect the most immoral, corrupt and even inept persons. Power is being traded for personal greed, wealth, and even for other immoral acts at the altar of interests and well-being of the common man, particularly those who have no access to information and are poorly endowed.

Another glaring drawback in governments is that they ignore facts and data. Conclusions are drawn without the knowledge of reality. Dictates of whims and fancies are believed more than what is on record. There is no accountability for uninformed conclusions and decisions. Some political philosophers assert that wrong decisions do get noticed and accounted for during the elections, but by then enough damage is done to the system and the people.

On the other hand, some information experts blame the data management policies and systems for the lack of information with the policymakers. There is no statutorily established system through which an official or a politician is guided and provided information before s/he gets on with any policy planning and implementation. Elected representatives are just thrust with power immediately on election without any orientation and prior access to information and guidance. Governance appears to be the least of their concerns.

Undeniably, judicial scrutiny of executive decisions has saved the country from many embarrassing and not-so-well-informed decisions and situations. There have been occasions when laws and rules have been either moderated or annulled by the judiciary primarily because these were violative of the well-established principles of the Constitution and public policy.

Judicial scrutiny and moderation became more pronounced after the Emergency in 1975, and more importantly after the 42nd Constitutional Amendment. But some thinkers believe that even such scrutiny can be manipulated and manoeuvred.

This may not happen all the time, but it is not unheard of or unnoticed. Can judicial scrutiny be made more stringent and infallible?

The declining public essence of governance has reached alarming levels, though it may not be correct to say that all governments have not governed well. However, there is a need to wake up. For effective and people-centric governance by the governments, effective data and information management systems, enhanced transparency, and effective and un-manoeuvrable judicial scrutiny need urgent attention.

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