Vote for who?!?!

The latest buzz these days on the radio ( I got no TV ) is all about voting. There are various ads about how if you aren’t happy with the way your city is shaping up then vote for the person who will fix it all for you. Now I understand how votes can make a huge difference and the voices of people who haven’t been bribed by political parties are very crucial to having a fair election. But there is one huge loop hole to this “solution” to save the country and its people. Who do we vote for???? Our choices are limited to choosing between one goonda or another.

The election that is coming up now is to vote for the person to be placed in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly or to make it simpler to become an MLA. Now, after scourging the internet, this is the definition I found for the Legislative Assembly.

Legislative Assembly: The constitutional body empowered to make legislations on the subjects coming in the state list as per constitutional division of powers between the Centre and State. Each district is represented by a specific number of MLAs in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly.

• They make laws for the state.

It has powers to levy taxes, raise resources, authorize the state Govt. expenditure by passing the annual budget of the state Govt. presented in the assembly. Thus it is responsible for the development of the State.

• They are the guys who decide the amount of money the state requires and budget it for different purposes. In other words, the reason for the very poor state of infrastructure in Karnataka. This roads are the worst in the country!!!

The Chief Minister and Council of Ministers remain in power as long as they enjoy the confidence of the State Legislative Assembly. Thus the member of Legislative Assembly decides on the leadership of the State Govt. and controls its activities through the financial powers vested in the assembly.

• They decide who our chief minister is!!!!! They also have control over state finances and thus over the chief minister! ( I think )

Member of Legislative Assembly or MLA: He is responsible for the development of constituency, He places the developmental needs and problems of people of his constituency before the Govt. and sees that proper plans are formulated for the benefit of the people of this constituency.

• Each of us have to vote for a person who we feel will take the trouble of voicing our issues to “THEM” ( GOVT )

He participates in the proper running of the Govt. by raising questions and calling attention of the Govt. to important matters on the floor of the Assembly.

• If he has attended the session and is not fast asleep, must ensure that no bad decision is made in the assembly that can have drastic consequences!

He participates as a member in one of the various house committees which scrutinize inspect the functioning of the Govt. departments minutely.

This ones pretty obvious! Just look at the responsibilities these guys have to carry out. The reason I explained all of this is because most people aren’t aware that an election is happening, and of those who are aware, most don’t know what it is for! ( Me a few hours ago! ) and those who are aware and proactive have no idea whom to vote for!!!!! This is such a crazy dilemma that we all are in! None of the people standing for elections have actively promoted their goals for their constituencies, but I guess the main reason is because people don’t think this is important. Its just like that “Tata Tea” ad on TV, where a guy questions the MLA on his qualifications and the MLA actually takes offense at the question asked!

The only thing that the state government provides us is entertainment and complete insecurity and distrust. Why can’t we hold people responsible for work that they were supposed to do? Why can’t we have the people contesting on and more public platform such as TV ( or radio for me! ) where they debate on issues and allow us to see who is the best person for the job?

We waste our time voting for idols, when we should be spending time voting for a better future.

If you want more information, then check out http://www.indian-elections.com and http://www.kar.nic.in to know more about whats happening. Most of the stuff in there is outdated though. I heard a speech by the chairman of the legislative council Prof B.K Chandrashekar, in December’ 07 and I was really amazed to see a guy who spoke so well, and was so highly educated. He actually understood the problems of the city and was simply enlightening. Maybe we do have more people like him in Karnataka, but all we see is the corruption and injustice.

I will not be voting during these elections mainly because I will not be in my constituency ( Mangalore ) and also I do not know who to vote for. I see no point in ticking some random persons name and hoping he hasn’t been to jail in the last 6 months! But those of you who are aware, please do vote! And those of you who are brave enough, do compete for elections, maybe we could make a difference!