Help the State help itself

A quick glance around us today is enough to recognise that the government is struggling to carry out a lot of its duties and functions. Traffic, water supply, jobs, housing, natural resources – in one thing after another, it seems as though there is no system in place to understand and respond to challenges. Instead, there is a lot of drift and wishful thinking that somehow the government’s acts of commission and omission will magically create solutions.

Over decades, the standard response from citizens has been to demand better performance through representation to the government, through petitions, protests, and elections, hoping for real change. This approach, clearly, is delivering only very limited results. We are still grappling with the same challenges we once hoped would be resolved long ago, like overflowing landfills, erratic power supply, poorly-thought-out projects, and all-round corruption.

Is there another path forward? To discover it, we must first dig into the root causes behind why our wishes remain unfulfilled. A part of the problem lies in a lack of genuine concern among the elected representatives and government officials for public services and broader societal purposes. Too often, their priorities point to political optics and vested interests rather than citizen needs – the choices proposed by experts are discarded while the whims of those in power turn into giant projects. Ignorance is a feature of the system; it is not a bug, and over time, it has firmly set in.

But there’s more to it. In addition to the induced knowledge deficit, there is a huge collaboration deficit. Those in government have very little practice in solving problems by working with citizens, businesses, or academia, even when it is plainly evident that the sarkar alone cannot fix a problem. Perhaps this is a kind of shield – keeping citizens at arm’s length reduces the risk that they’ll notice how lost the government is about many things.

This isn’t going to change from within. It can only be changed from the outside. But how? If polls and protests have not worked, what else might?

I think we should try helping the government instead. Society is brimming with untapped skills that could prove valuable in governance, from data-savvy engineers mapping flood-prone areas in the city to environmentalists advocating regenerative farming for depleted soils. There are also lots of people who have, in their limited spheres of action, solved problems that the governments continue to struggle with. Their expertise could be very useful.

And let’s not forget the sheer numbers: there are far more capable people outside government – technology professionals, academics, system designers, and others – than within its ranks. Initiatives such as citizen-led lake rejuvenation groups or the Namma Railu group that advocated suburban rail services show the potential, where well-informed volunteers have successfully nudged actions that seemed impossible in government. How? By adding their help to their demands.

This addition is important. Citizens’ support for governance doesn’t require us to abandon demands for accountability. In fact, it strengthens our claim to it. By offering help and delivering results, we strengthen our right to hold officials to higher standards.

And the better officials and representatives don’t mind this. Several times in the last year, I have heard people in government say that they get a lot of good suggestions and believe that some of those would be good to implement, but they’re unsure if the people they have in the department can do what’s needed. I have learned not to despair when I hear that; accepting the limitations of the status quo is a beginning.

One might wonder, then, what taxes are for if citizens must pitch in? Aren’t they meant to fund expert governance by others? Yes, but taxes were never intended to fund the outsourcing of every aspect of governance in a democracy. Think back to the Constitution – the journey of a democracy begins with ‘we, the people’. Even in the best of times, it is only by doing some things right at the departure station that we can travel and arrive safely and on time.

The simplest thing each of us can do to nudge governance is to walk up to the local ward office, say, “You seem to be struggling with a few things,” and then offer to help. It can seem abrupt, and even a little harsh. But it has another useful quality – it is true, and that makes it a good starting point for a new way forward.

The writer is a social entrepreneur, founder of Mapunity and LVBL, and co-founder, Lithium, wakes up with hope for the city and society, goes to bed with a sigh.

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are the author's own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of DH.