Why Politics?

As a teacher of the social sciences in a second-cycle institution, I have been questioned many times by my students and even colleagues about why there is a need to concern themselves with matters of politics and governance. In their rather unfortunate opinions, they see no reason why they should care what happens in the political realm of their beloved country, let alone on the global level. Some say their opinions do not matter enough to change the direction the country is heading and to bring about solutions to the endless problems we seem to face in this country. Some on the other hand find no joy in politics. They have rather developed a misconception that their voice matters not and that the will of the politician is greater than the will of the people. However, there is another group who do not mind politics simply because they lack the knowledge and understanding of what governance is all about. Simply speaking, many do not know what goes on in the political realm simply because they lack political education. Due to this, many choose not to participate in politics in any form and that includes abstaining from voting during elections. Others unfortunately think politics is the preserve of ‘intellectuals’ and the rich. I beg to differ. Politics isn’t something meant for the rich and ‘intellectuals’ of our society but for every one of us. As a people, we should be concerned with how we are governed and what goes into governance. An understanding of the basics of politics allows us to see our society and that of others in a different light. Political educations enable us to identify the key problems plaguing the country and also, enables us to have an appreciation of why politicians behave the way they do. Now I am not saying we should all become students of political science. No. Rather, we should be driven to seek information about the role the government plays in the governance of the country and how the decisions of our governments affect almost every aspect of our lives. You see, we cannot continue to bury our heads in the sand and pretend that the actions of our politicians do not have major implications on our everyday lives. That would be unwise. Basic knowledge and understanding of politics and governance, will make us more decerning of the frequent lies and half-truths fed to us by our ‘beloved’ politicians, be it those in government and those aspiring to one day ascend into power. Political knowledge also enables us to know and protect our rights and liberties as humans and citizens of a country. It teaches us that our voice matters and that the power of the constitution and government emanates from us the people. For even though we are subject to the laws that govern us and the powers that be, both the laws and the powers that be, are subject to the whims and will of the people. Together we can achieve a lot, but only if we know what we are capable of doing. For far too long we have been taken for granted by our politicians. They continuously feed on our ignorance and take an advantage of our unwillingness to question the status quo. We as a people have time and time again failed to hold our leaders accountable. We have followed them diligently and trusted that whatever lies they tell us and the actions they perform must be the best for us. But we cannot keep living this way. We must wake up from our slumber and hold them accountable to us. We must make our leaders understand they work for us and they are what they are because we made them so and we hold the power to unmake them when they fail to satisfy our expectations and be true to the promises, they make us. That is why we should eagerly seek political knowledge and understanding, for lack of knowledge we perish, and will continue to do so until we cause the scales in our eyes to fall and see the light that knowledge brings us.