Re: Two questions to IPI members

[Padmanabha Rao <kvprao@igidr.ac.in>]

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On Sat, 2 Sep 2000, Cprakash wrote:
 I tend to agree with this statement. Legislators need not be paid much
 for their work. Legislators should probably be people who having
 acheived much in life, want to give a stint of public service... But, I
 think the executive must be paid well. The executive is more like a job
 and less like service. A well paid civil service should be accountable
 to the public directly or to the people's representative. But
 nevertheless, I think government size must be shrunk to a very great
 extent and made a lot more accountable.

Why do we continue to expect the existence of utopian members in the
polity ?

That apart, one needs to see the proper validity of the distinction
between 'legislature' and 'executive'. And further it seems naive to draw
a difference between 'job' and 'service'. A good legislature would ensure
that there is the most minimal NEED for executive jobs. I think it is
policies and not their implementation that is more important. Fine
policies are already tuned for self-implementation. They are based on a
keen understanding of the drives and mores of the actors and subjects
constituting the polity, and re-present their choice. The 'executive' in
such a polity is really the 'judiciary' which executes the policies when
they are transgressed (and appealed for expressly). The Cabinet
Secretary's job is to serve the Cabinet, whose job it is to serve those
who gave it power. If you want a great cabinet secretary, get yourself a
greater cabinet first (personally, I wouldn't even be bothered about the
cabinet secretary, that's for the cabinet to worry about, including
whether there is a need for bureaucrasy at all). You seem to have confused
the factor of time with that of power.

Mr Prakashji, I am amazed you find reason to support the argument for
highly paid 'executives' and ascetic legislators; it would be unnecessary
in the land-tax based economy you campaign for! (I have presumed
'executives' mean more than 'clerical').

The difficult part is getting *good* legislators to form that *good*
legislature. And it doesn't help to forsake this prime necessity in favour
of attracting *bright* people to the 'executive'. Attracting them to the
'legislature' is of deeper and greater importance, and in fact both for
democratic and non-democratic type of polities.

rao


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