Editorial
PM's stern warning
Lawmakers should help governance, not harm it
The prime minister's exhortations to her party MPs to refrain from patronising tender manipulation and extortion are certainly an expression of her deep concern over the issue. Similarly, her warning that wrongdoings would invite stern action from the government is an indication of how critical the situation has become. We believe her concern couldn't have come a day later as reports of Chhatra League activists taking control of tenders continue to pour in.
We fully share her views on the issue of MPs exerting influence on the bureaucracy to extract undue advantages for the ruling party activists. There is absolutely no doubt that the ruling party's image gets badly bruised if its supporters engage themselves in illegal activities like extortion and tender hijacking. The prime minister very rightly felt the need for doing something to rein in the errant MPs. However, mere exhortations are not really enough, as we learned many times in the past. What is needed is examples that can lend an aura of credibility to the prime ministers' stand. No wrong doers should be spared because of her/ his political identity. So, identify, expose and punish the lawbreakers working in the guise of lawmakers! This is a task that would require a clear and strong commitment to weeding out the elements that bring bad name to the party and weaken governance.
The ruling party has to go beyond the routine course of condemning the criminal activities. The arguments put forward by some MPs in the AL parliamentary party's meeting to support tender manipulation appear to be bizarre. It seems some of the party leaders are convinced that they can grab tenders only because their political adversaries did so when they were in power! The lesson to be learned from the meeting is that certain MPs and political leaders still have the grab-it-all mentality, which can be disastrous for the party itself.
The ruling party should have its own version of intelligence that will let the leaders know where things are crossing the limits of acceptability and who are responsible for it. They can also instruct the police and the civil administration not to be influenced by any the MPs and their followers seeking undue favours. Such words of assurance will boost the law enforcers' morale. The prime minister's thoughts, based on a correct assessment of the situation, must now be translated into concrete action to clear her party of the grabbers and looters.
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