Democracy was designed to save us from tyranny and to create a system of government that ensures the involvement of the people in every major political decisions, a representative government that rules on behalf of the people, with the people's interest being their utmost priority. Government of the people, by the people, for the people - as defined by abram Lincoln. An acute definition of what the practice of democracy is meant to be or what it should have been.
One of the primary attribute of democracy is franchise, the right of every citizen to vote and be voted for. This is how representatives that governs on behalf of the people are elected in power. In most democratic setting, a president and other members of executive arm of government are elected into power every 4 years and maximum of 8 years. Which means an elected president can remain in power for two terms making 8 years in total.
Every elected representative of the people, is known to be chosen by the people, since they were elected into power by the people. Which means electing someone to govern on behalf of the people is solely dependent on the citizens discretion. Though this is not all that gets leaders in today's society elected, there is more to election than what an average man sees. But based on textbook definition of how a representative of the people rise to power, that is how it is done.
Here comes the issue, the people that are expected to be knowledgeable enough to vote and elect a leader, might not be as knowledgeable as the textbook expects them to be. Voting is a game of numbers, and people who form the larger percentage of the voting power of a country are uneducated or not aware of their political responsibility. Especially in developing countries, which means there is a high possibility that an incapable leader will be elected due to lack of knowledge of the voters.
This is a fact everyone gunning for political office is aware of. So while most people are making noise of social media about who should be elected and who should not, politicians go to rural areas, not the cities. The reason is quite simple, large percentage of people in villages and rural areas don't have enough knowledge to resist being manipulated by politicians. Moreover, manipulating such people doesn't cost much, compared to those in the city.
Since they are not aware of how much power their vote carries, with few pennies and a promise for a better future, they would scream the names of their oppressors and gladly cast their votes for them. This is one of the issues democratic face, when the masses lack policital awareness or education, how do you expect them to vote a capable leader into power.
So, instead of trusting voters to make their own decision about who to vote, why not tell them who to vote? It might make sense to ordinary people or people who don't understand the nature of humans. The reason why democracy was introduced is to eradicate tyranny or absolutism. To give power to the people and make leaders be at the mercy of the people. The moment we allow a system that dictates who voters can vote for , it will be abused.
Even as it is right now, in a country like mine, it is getting very difficult to trust the electoral commission to do their jobs. Now imagine if those people are also given the power to suggest who to vote to voters, then the leader that is voted into power is no longer the choice of the people but the choice of those who asked the people to vote the elected candidate. The voting power will no longer be with the people but in the hands of those who dictates who should be voted.
This write-up was inspired by weekly featured content titled voting your choice in hive learners community.
Cover Image - generated using chatgpt
