Anti-politics Sentiments; Analytical and Policy Response - Essay Example

? Anti-politics Sentiments; Analytical and Policy Response Anti-politics sentiments; analytical and policy response Executive summary There is a growing sense of dislike for the political systems. The political class must demystify the art or running governments. The fundamental reason for democracy is servicing people using the government machinery. The concept of political systems was built on the premise of public involvement and participation. The public trades power for protection of their rights. However, the political class over the years has increasingly alienated the electorate from participating in decisions that affect their lives. This has caused the rise of anti-political sentiments and gradual decline of citizenship. The political class has continuously accrued benefits at the expense of the people they claim to represent. To eliminate the rise of anti-political sentiments, the nationalism sentiments must be promoted through equitable distribution of resources. Self-serving politicians have caused the populace to develop a strong dislike for politics. The low political interest and anti-political sentiments can be overcome through intentional steps understand the needs of ordinary people. Therefore, politicians should take time to discuss with their policies with the public even when they are occupying powerful positions. It is recommended that politicians make policies through consultative processes. Structured decision making processes ease tension and reduce anti-political sentiments. Introduction Anti-political sentiments have been on the rise. The liberal democracies have continued to push public participation further through increased bureaucracies. A healthy democracy must have citizens who are willing to appreciate the value of institutions, elections, political parties and protection of the rights of minorities. The rise of anti-political sentiments is said to pose imminent threats to the stability of liberal democracies. The main concerns of the citizens must be addressed through aggressive public discussions and representation. This essay explores the topic of anti-political sentiments. Citizens are increasingly becoming frustrated by broken political promises and leadership that serves the elite or upper class. People are losing confidence in the democratically established institution. Clearly, the rise of anti-political sentiments should be a major point of concern. The purpose of essay is to discuss the rise of anti-politics sentiments and the potential impacts on governments. People and democracy In many parts of the world, people have been developing disenchantment from politics. The persistence in alienation has been increasing. According to Hansard -Audit of political involvement-, the start of the 21st century assessment indicated the desire of the British people to have meaningful and significant improvement in the government and political systems. Over six out of ten Britons had little or no faith in the political systems. An increasing number of people have lost confidence on the political system. This has been clearly seen through the desire to have an overhaul of the electoral system. The focus has been to make a system that is inclusive and reflective of the needs and desires of the people. Political participation by citizens is a multidimensional issue. Main argument The rise of anti-political sentiments has been stirred by poor governance and insensitivity from the leadership. There is a dire need to develop policy that encourages inclusiveness and political equity (Hogan 2007: 9). There are calls to increase and develop the political capacity of the citizens and to establish new politics that respect with concerns of the citizens. Globalization has redefined participation. Therefore, there is a crucial need to rethink the political membership and participation (Zittel and Fuchs, 2006: 15). The virtual platform has become an important tool for citizens to express outright resentment to politicians and in extreme cases toppling of governments. The rise of anti-political sentiments has also been expressed through the refusal to participate in the voting process by many citizens across the world. This should be a source of concern to governments. Politics have continued without taking into consideration the emergence of multiculturalism. In the modern world, the citizens-politicians (state) relationship is increasingly becoming ambiguous. The politicians are perceived to enemies of the progress and empowerment of the people (Chan 2010:81). This was unthinkable a few decades ago. The political elite have been subjecting the citizens to unnecessary surveillance. In the United States, the state has been tapping into private telephone conversations and x-ray searches which are involuntary. The political class has developed structures that make it difficult for the citizens to censure policies that intrude into privacy. Citizens are increasingly becoming disgruntled. There is an urgent need to address the rising anti-political sentiments before it is too late. The state has been using the war against terrorism to usurp the freedom of innocent citizens. A recent report by the CNN indicated that an American citizen had been fatally injured by an American-launched drone attack. The federal bureau of investigation and criminal investigation authority agents have been known to intrude privacy and even hack information to access classified information. Citizens are increasingly skeptical of their governments. The citizenship is losing confidence in the ability of the state to protect their interest and welfare. The access to legal redress institutions is perceived to be unequal. While politicians have access to exclusive protection and security personnel, the ordinary taxpayer remain vulnerable to crime and terrorism. The judiciary lacks a cutting edge when it comes to dealing with some forms of criminality. In the United States, the war against terrorism is widely viewed as a perfect excuse to curtail freedom. The state has become an important player when it comes to provision of basic services. These include social care, health and education and income support. The frustrations from expectant citizens who cast all their hopes upon political promises have been on the rise for decades. The frustrations were clearly evident during the recent Arab spring. The people overthrew government citing frustrations and disconnection between politicians and the ordinary citizens. The era of constitutionalism was instigated by the need for people to control their lives during enlightenment. The freedoms and rights of citizens were clearly spelled and discussed in open forums (Bengtsson & Malttila, 2009: 229). The government was charged with the responsibility of safeguarding the rights and privileges of citizens while politicians were given instruments of power. However, in the recent times, the approach has been changed by politicians (Hogan 2007: 15). Hansard Society argues that, the politicians have been making promises to the electorate and using the instruments of power to consolidate their power and influence. Many liken anti-political sentiments to a time bomb. Its importance should not be underestimated. The rising anti-political sentiments should be a call to action and real cause for concern. Frustrations often turn violent if not contained in time. The state has been accused by the citizens of over taxation and rationing things that are meant for public consumption (Neblo, et al, 2010: 571). These inconveniences include inaccessible healthcare systems and regular salaries and pension hikes for the high profile politicians against public protests and backlash. The citizens have been questioning the redistribution system of the government programs such as national health services. The public has been discontented by the quality of public service they get. The public have numerous examples on wastes when it comes to provision of public services. The politicians accuse the public of spiraling expectations from the government and unrealistic hopes (Zittel and Fuchs 2006: 22). The state has been trying to teach the public on the need to assist the government when it comes to service delivery. John F. Kennedy once blamed the government for his inability to serve the ordinary peoples’ needs. In a telephone conversation with an ordinary citizen-who had requested for assistance- the president said he was willing but the government would not allow him. Indeed, the American presidents have blamed the bureaucracy for their inability to perform (Stoker 2009: 229). The humongous nature of the government makes it difficult for change to be felt by the public. The relationship between the state and citizens is both ambiguous and contradictory. This legitimizes the anti-political sentiments. The state has been captured by special interests driven by few elites. Politicians must get to the point of understanding the needs of ordinary people. This can avert the increasing sentiments of anti-politics which are threatening even strong democracies (Neblo, et al, 2010: 571). The politicians are not expected to keep asking the needs of the citizens since there are expectations that political leaders are ordinary citizens (Chen 2010:79). Ordinary citizens have developed a dislike for debates on policy. There is a growing feeling that the actual challenge lies in the execution of the existing policies. The fourth estate has replaced the ordinary citizen’s views with expert panelists and competent business entrepreneurs. The citizens are detached from the ongoing decision making processes that pertain to their economic destiny (Macedo 2005:19). Instead, they have left the political elites to take over and shield their special interests using the state machinery. There is evidence that accumulated anti-political sentiments erupt into chaos and instability. The 2011 London activism was controversial. The government was quick to brand the demonstrators as thugs. Some analysts viewed the occurrences as contempt for the rich and the inequality in the system. The government-which had been cutting public spending- was accused of promoting the rising levels of unemployment that resulted in frustrations. However, there was evidence that most of the protestors were too young to join the labor market. This was interpreted as rising hopelessness among the youths which was expressed unreasonably. The ordinary people attempt to frustrate the government to make their voices heard (Bengtsson and Malttila 2009: 1045). Research shows that politicians are willing to turn public opinions and replace them with unaccountable alternatives while still promising efficiency. As a result the public is slowing losing confidence in debates. Those supporting stealth democracy have lost trust in political utterances (Hibbing and Theiss-Morse, 2002:4). Modern liberal democracies have accepted the suspicion to exist between politicians and citizens, oblivious of the impacts of the political cynicism. According to politicians, the ambiguity of their roles seems to favor them a great deal. Liberal democracies have continued to suffer from negative political sentiments. The idea of social contract has continued to suffer worse attitudes. The rulers and sovereign people lack a functional relationship notwithstanding the existence of social contract concept (Dalton 2004:21). According to Dalton (2004), the politicians are perceived enemies to the public welfare (21). The citizens no longer trust their representatives. The existing political procedures are non-efficient leading to poor performance (Hay and Stoker 2009: 229). The situation is being aggravated by investigative journalists who expose the corrupt deals and the unethical behaviors by the politicians. The political malpractices and disseminated biases by the politicians have resulted to public resentment. A 2007 study indicated that the anti-political sentiments are continuing to rise in the western world. People perceive politics to have failed in dealing with its prerogatives. This has prompted to disengagement in politics evidenced by the low political turnouts and public meetings. The public are skeptical of working with political parties. Policy options To check the rising anti-politics sentiments leading to voter apathy and frustrations, a number of initiatives must be taken. A policy that establishes consultative policies must be enforced. The politicians must be at the fore front of understanding the basic needs of ordinary citizens. The politicians have come out as a social class obsessed with power and incompetent when it comes to dealing with complexities facing the populace. The rising critical citizenry need listening ears. The face image of politics reflects unpleasant features of ruthless politicians who fight for power using wealth and powerful connections. The presence of policies that enforce integrity standards is crucial to public confidence and participation. The politicians need to redefine their image to earn admiration. The politicians are good in underestimating the power of citizenry. The increasing levels of education and variety of channels of information have caused the rise of self-empowered populace. The politicians have an alternative to encourage participatory politics. The politicians should also make honest and sustainable promises. The solution to anti-political sentiments can come from the harnessing of political ideas. The citizens have been consistent on their support for democracy. Research indicates that support for democracy is on the rise. However, the citizens are against the lessening of democratic participations in the process of governance. The politicians have been deliberate in retaining exclusive rights to far reaching decisions. The governments failures must be overturn through faithful delivery of services and scandal free performances. The current policies need to be revamped and enforced to the letter. Recommendations 1. The political class must demystify the art or running governments. The fundamental reason for democracy is servicing people using the government machinery. The people cannot hold the government accountable without an acute understanding of how the system works. The populace must participate in the process of governance through working establishment of working democratic systems. 2. To eliminate the rise of anti-political sentiments, the nationalism sentiments must be promoted through equitable distribution of resources. The low trust of the political class is fueled by the recurrent political scandals. The leadership seems to pass from political families with ordinary citizens having little or no change to access to power. The detrimental impacts of reservations and withdrawal by the citizenry from the must be taught through civic education initiatives. The withdrawal of public participation in the democratic process can result in the collapse of democracy. The government must make politicians accountable and responsible through establishing of strong independent institutions. 3. The low political interest and anti-political sentiments can be overcome through intentional steps understand the needs of ordinary people. This may entail engaging the detached populations including the minorities. The politicians must earn trust even from the least interested people. Politics must be viewed as a gauge for trust. Politicians must understand the actual meaning of politics to ordinary people. The politicians need to prioritize the basic needs of the populace. At the same time, the political elites must be informed the consequences of increased anti-political sentiments on the stability of the economy. Ultimate policy recommendation The policy of enforcing consultative policies is the most productive. The main players are involved in this recommendation. They include the ordinary people, politicians and experts. The government should build independent institutions that win the confidence of the public. Widespread decision making processes entail eases tensions and wins public support. This is essential in curbing anti-political sentiments. Governments should take time to explain to the public reasons for promoting certain positions. Crucial decisions need to be endorsed through a referendum. Conclusion The rising levels of anti-political sentiments should be a major of concern in liberal democracies. The needs of the citizens should be adequately addressed through strong, responsive and impartial institutions. The political leaders have over the years exerted their influence to compromise institutional effectiveness. This has pushed the expectations of the citizens to the precipice of despair. Therefore, liberal democracies must enforce consultative policies and widespread decision making processes. The policy options should be both effective and flexible to meet the dynamic nature of needs of citizens. Ordinary citizens must be given tangible reasons to develop a liking for debate that concern policy and governance. There is a growing feeling that the actual challenge lies in the execution of the existing policies. The citizens must feel attached in the ongoing decision making processes that pertain to their economic destiny. This is the only way to control the growing anti-political sentiments, whose increase can affect political stability in any democracy. References Bengtsson, A and Malttila, M 2009. ‘Direct Democracy and its Critics: Support for Direct Democracy and Stealth Democracy in Finland’ West European Politics 32:5, 1031-48 Dalton, R. J. 2004. Democratic Challenges, Democratic Choices: The Erosion of Political Support in Advanced Industrial Democracies. 1st ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Hogan, M. 2007. Anti-political sentiment in contemporary liberal democracies. Australian Review of Public Affairs, 8,1, 1-18. Hay , C., & Stoker, G. 2009. Have We Lost the Plot? Representation, 45,3, 225-236. Hibbing, J., & Theiss-Morse, E. 2002. Stealth Democracy: American’s Belief About How Democracy Should Work 1st ed. Cambridge University Press. Macedo, S. 2005. Democracy At Risk: How Political Choices Undermine Citizen Participation And What We Can Do About It. 1st ed. Brookings Institute. Neblo, M.; Esterling, K., Kennedy,R.,Lazer,D., Sokhey,A 2010. ‘Who Wants to Deliberate-And Why? ‘ American Political Science Review 104:3, 566-583 Chen, V. 2010. Anti-Politics: A Story and Various Papers.1st ed. iUniverse. Stoker, G. 2006. Why Politics Matters: Making Democracy Work. 1st ed. Palgrave. Zittel, T., & Fuchs, D. 2006. Participatory democracy and Political Participation.1st ed. Rutledge. Read More