Kejriwal's Gamble
On 14th February, the Delhi Chief Minister, Arvind Kejriwal resigned, because his Aam Aadmi Party could not pass the Jan Lokpal Bill in Delhi Assembly. The thought process here being, since the Aam Aadmi Party did not have the majority in Delhi Assembly, it is better to seek a fresh term with a better majority that will allow them to pass the Jan Lokpal Bill in the new assembly. Wikipedia defines "Gambling is the wagering of money or something of material value on an event with an uncertain outcome with the primary intent of winning additional money and/or material goods." Essentially Aam Aadmi Party has wagered its present seats in the Delhi Assembly for additional seats in a future Assembly.
Plowman
That set me thinking about what The Bible says about this thought process. From what I could remember from The Bible, I did not see any wise person gambling away a current advantage, for a perceived better future advantage. In fact, Jesus in Luke 9:62 says “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.” The Bible expects its followers to carry out a chosen task to its logical conclusion. Proverbs 20:4 says "The sluggard does not plow in the autumn; he will seek at harvest and have nothing." Unlike the gambler, the plowman when he plows the ground will have a very definite harvest determined by the crop he plants. The Bible in essence demands diligence, and not a frivolous attitude.
This is the day, now is the time
The God of The Bible is basically a God of the present and emphasizes living in the present, and not in the past or the future. Romans 13:11-14 says "But make sure that you don’t get so absorbed and exhausted in taking care of all your day-by-day obligations that you lose track of the time and doze off, oblivious to God. The night is about over, dawn is about to break. Be up and awake to what God is doing! God is putting the finishing touches on the salvation work he began when we first believed. We can’t afford to waste a minute, must not squander these precious daylight hours in frivolity and indulgence, in sleeping around and dissipation, in bickering and grabbing everything in sight. Get out of bed and get dressed! Don’t loiter and linger, waiting until the very last minute. Dress yourselves in Christ, and be up and about!"
Jan Lokpal Bill
From the resignation action of Arvind Kejriwal, the Aam Aadmi Party is projecting that the Jan Lokpal Bill is even more important than governing Delhi. The primary duty of a 'govern'ment is to govern. I am certainly disappointed, that a Government that was elected to govern Delhi, in a short period of seven weeks, has chosen to give such a large importance to a document called Jan Lokpal Bill over the actual act of governing Delhi.
Wikipedia states that "The Jan Lokpal Bill aims to effectively deter corruption, compensate citizen grievances, and protect whistle-blowers. The prefix Jan (translation: citizens) signifies that these improvements include inputs provided by "ordinary citizens" through an activist-driven, non-governmental public consultation."
Corruption
Wikipedia defines "Political Corruption is the use of power by government officials for illegitimate private gain." In my thinking, what the Aam Aadmin Party has done in Delhi fits into this Political Corruption view. Aam Aadmin Party was the government and it used its government powers to gamble away the government for the illegitimate private benefit of the Aam Aadmi Party. The loss of governance in Delhi has to be borne by the Delhi residents. Meanwhile the Aam Aadmi Party is forcing additional election expenses on the Nation on its gamble to come back with greater majority. Which Jan Lokpal Bill will try Aam Aadmi Party for its Political Corruption?
No comments:
Post a Comment