The case for a complainable government
Firstly, I do not know whether the word "complainable" exists in the English language and from the red lines I keep getting from the spell-check, chances are that it doesn't. It is however meant to convey the sense of a concept in governance that most governments do not like yet whose potential for improving service delivery should not be ignored. A complainable government is one whose citizens and non-citizens that fall under its jurisdiction are allowed and actually encouraged to complain and criticise it when things are not administered according to the desires of the people.
This entails governments making it a point to create avenues for receipt of complaints and criticism. A situation where the government solicits and attends to complaints and criticism. The process does not end there though, as government needs to show that not only have they received the complaints but are assiduously working towards addressing them and if not they should provide tangible reasons on why that cannot be done. I am therefore not talking about the usual rusty and sometimes rickety suggestion boxes that noone opens. I am talking about having administrative structures that accommodate and even solicit complaints. In that way government services will be continuously tailored and packaged to meet the expectations of the people who ultimately are the masters.
For most governments in various stages of development, this remains only a pipe dream and sometimes the advocacy for more transparency and engagement between government and citizens is seen as unrealistic, bent on derailing smooth government operations and sometimes treated with the nonchalance of a child trying to distract its parent from the phone. They are noises that at best require a little attention with carefully chosen words uttered in their direction while at worst are best ignored till they tire and getting the hint, slip into oblivion (which apparently is where they belong according to some politicians).
Perhaps the biggest affront to the realisation of a complainable government is the tendency by many government bureaucrats to attempt to shroud their operations in an aura of mystery. This I believe lulls them into a sense of self-importance believing their work is too complicated for the ordinary citizen to understand. This helps government maintain a certain power and influence over the ordinary citizens the same which is greatly exploited to get government out of tight corners. Such bureaucrats would do well not to under-estimate the intelligence of ordinary citizens.
Attending to complaints is further seen as a waste of time and comes at the expense of 'serious' government business. Besides, even when there is a department handling complaints, they are less in importance and prestige compared to their counterparts engaged in handling 'serious' business. As such these issues are treated as unwelcome side-tracks whose engagement only leads to loss of valuable time.
I will admit that attending to complaints can be time-consuming and sometimes so engrossing that it could become an end itself as opposed to being a means to an end; that end being a more effective and efficient government. However its potential for improving service delivery and more importantly engendering trust between the government and its people is beyond dispute.And as history will show, there is nothing as fearful for any government as losing the trust and confidence of those you claim to govern.
Question authority!
A complainable government shows that it is interested in the daily welfare of the people. That there is life and partnership beyond the campaign trail, partnership beyond the earnest and often times desperate plea for votes and that campaign promises are actually worth pursuing. It helps entrench a sense of partnership between the formulators of public policy and those whose interest public policy is supposed to address.
A complainable government is a great assist in breeding democracy and transparency. Allowing people to complain dispels the mythical strongman in politics, shows that the governor and governed are actually equal partners only that they are on opposite sides of the spectrum. It helps the governor know that he is accountable to those that gave him the mandate to preside over their affairs. It adds perspective to politics.
A complainable government encourages citizens to take more than just a cursory interest in national affairs. They don't go about their own business letting the nation be on auto-pilot, but play their own significant role in shaping governance by providing feedback through complaints and concerns. There is nothing as enabling for healthy democracies as a fully participating public, in tune to the slightest of changes in public policy.
This then is the case for a complainable government. It is not a call to revolution but rather a call to citizens to take up their rightful positions. And to governments to provide the needed channels. Only then can democracy really flourish.
This entails governments making it a point to create avenues for receipt of complaints and criticism. A situation where the government solicits and attends to complaints and criticism. The process does not end there though, as government needs to show that not only have they received the complaints but are assiduously working towards addressing them and if not they should provide tangible reasons on why that cannot be done. I am therefore not talking about the usual rusty and sometimes rickety suggestion boxes that noone opens. I am talking about having administrative structures that accommodate and even solicit complaints. In that way government services will be continuously tailored and packaged to meet the expectations of the people who ultimately are the masters.
For most governments in various stages of development, this remains only a pipe dream and sometimes the advocacy for more transparency and engagement between government and citizens is seen as unrealistic, bent on derailing smooth government operations and sometimes treated with the nonchalance of a child trying to distract its parent from the phone. They are noises that at best require a little attention with carefully chosen words uttered in their direction while at worst are best ignored till they tire and getting the hint, slip into oblivion (which apparently is where they belong according to some politicians).
Perhaps the biggest affront to the realisation of a complainable government is the tendency by many government bureaucrats to attempt to shroud their operations in an aura of mystery. This I believe lulls them into a sense of self-importance believing their work is too complicated for the ordinary citizen to understand. This helps government maintain a certain power and influence over the ordinary citizens the same which is greatly exploited to get government out of tight corners. Such bureaucrats would do well not to under-estimate the intelligence of ordinary citizens.
Attending to complaints is further seen as a waste of time and comes at the expense of 'serious' government business. Besides, even when there is a department handling complaints, they are less in importance and prestige compared to their counterparts engaged in handling 'serious' business. As such these issues are treated as unwelcome side-tracks whose engagement only leads to loss of valuable time.
I will admit that attending to complaints can be time-consuming and sometimes so engrossing that it could become an end itself as opposed to being a means to an end; that end being a more effective and efficient government. However its potential for improving service delivery and more importantly engendering trust between the government and its people is beyond dispute.And as history will show, there is nothing as fearful for any government as losing the trust and confidence of those you claim to govern.
Question authority!
A complainable government shows that it is interested in the daily welfare of the people. That there is life and partnership beyond the campaign trail, partnership beyond the earnest and often times desperate plea for votes and that campaign promises are actually worth pursuing. It helps entrench a sense of partnership between the formulators of public policy and those whose interest public policy is supposed to address.
A complainable government is a great assist in breeding democracy and transparency. Allowing people to complain dispels the mythical strongman in politics, shows that the governor and governed are actually equal partners only that they are on opposite sides of the spectrum. It helps the governor know that he is accountable to those that gave him the mandate to preside over their affairs. It adds perspective to politics.
A complainable government encourages citizens to take more than just a cursory interest in national affairs. They don't go about their own business letting the nation be on auto-pilot, but play their own significant role in shaping governance by providing feedback through complaints and concerns. There is nothing as enabling for healthy democracies as a fully participating public, in tune to the slightest of changes in public policy.
This then is the case for a complainable government. It is not a call to revolution but rather a call to citizens to take up their rightful positions. And to governments to provide the needed channels. Only then can democracy really flourish.
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