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'This is similar to the situation in Pakistan'
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh -- who is facing a plethora of problems including price rise, corrupt ministers and feuding allies -- could use some help in steering through the rocky terrains of governance. We had asked you, dear readers, to send in your suggestions about how Dr Singh can save UPA-II. Rediff.com received an overwhelming number of responses from readers. We present some of the best ideas, suggestions and tips to the PM right here:
Earlier in the series:
Your Say: 'PM should retire and rest at home'
Your Say: 'Modi is the only leader, all others are looters'
'PM has to become a democratic dictator'
'The PM has forgotten that we elected him'
Name: Sandeep
City: Mumbai
Suggestion: When you know there is corruption in your government, but you can't do anything about it to ensure the stability of your government, it is similar to the situation in Pakistan.
1) Why don't you form a Joint Parliamentary Committee to probe the 2G spectrum scam?
2) Why are you not sacking your agriculture minister?
3) Why don't you speak on the black money issue?
4) Why has your government not taken action against the culprits in CWG scam?
Our minister says the government doesn't have a magic wand to control inflation. But the people of India have a magic wand and they will brandish it during the next election.
'Tap the potential of our vast and talented population'
Name: Nitin
City: Gurgaon
Suggestion: Dear Dr Singh, I cannot pretend to know much about politics or governance. However, as an Indian, I express my gratitude to you for being a clean technocratic prime minister who envisioned and empowered New India. This is the India we live in today -- one where an open economy affords opportunities for hard-working, educated and meritorious citizens to build a career for themselves and a future for their families.
However, the real potential of our vast and talented population will remain under-utilised unless the environment for entrepreneurship improves drastically. Setting up a business is still prohibitively difficult in our country compared to the rest of the world.
Bureaucrats and politicians appear to have a 'political' compulsion to extract whatever possible from whoever has the misfortune of dealing with them. All industrialists and businessmen submit to this unofficial, unaccountable and inefficient 'tax'. The only difference is that some unwillingly bend to their circumstances, while others willingly manipulate the system to supply sub-standard products and services.
Please try to eradicate this cancer of corruption before it undoes all the good work of last decade. We are poised to take a historic leap from the platform you have helped to build. Only the shackles that our system imposes need to be broken.
'Improve education and sports'
Name: Daleep Kashkari
City: Thane, Maharashtra
Suggestion: The real Manmohan Singh has to wake up and stand tall. He has to lead by example and not as a proxy of Sonia Gandhi. The tainted ministers have to go. The PM has to take decisions and not only accept decisions. Even if the United Progressive Alliance falls, he has to stand for principles and not let rouge allies take him for a ride.
If the opposition is demanding a JPC probe, why oppose it? Let him agree to a JPC probe and carry on with the usual business in Parliament. Or else, he should step down to prove that he is a clean man.
Name: Dr Nand Kishore
City: Faizabad
Suggestion: Invite people to the Red Fort and hand over these corrupt ministers to them; ask the people for justice.
Name: Pancha
City: Tampa, Florida
Suggestion: Just improve education and sports; they will fix everything. Unless people improve, politicians can't do anything. Yetha praja, thatha raja.
'Don't accept donations'
Name: Not given
Suggestion:
1. Introduce political reforms by introducing a bill to stop all types of political corruption. Don't accept donations from industrialists, business persons, contractors etc. The entire expenditure of elections of all parties shall be the responsibility of the election commission.
2. Introduce paper transactions for all money through banks. Any cash payment above Rs 1 lakh should only be allowed via demand draft/cheque/RTGS or credit card. This will help in checking the menace of black money.
3. Introduce computerised bill system for all purchases in retail market, except for small retail traders with less than Rs 50,000 turnover in a month.
'Congressmen are the most loyal followers of Mahatma Gandhi'
Name: Nilesh Jain
Suggestion: To save this government, the Congress has a tried and tested formula. Be shameless, keep the throne, to hell with the nation!
Congressmen are the most loyal followers of Mahatma Gandhi's teachings.
See no evil: They could not 'see' the corrupt policies of A Raja, Suresh Kalmadi, P V Thomas, Ashok Chavan etc. The PM was always kept in the dark about their ways.
Hear no evil: They could not hear the evil lobbying by various corporate houses.
Talk no evil: They keep on praising the government rather than criticising its corrupt ways.
Since Mahatma Gandhi never said 'Do no evil', they keep doing evil deeds. Scams keep on surfacing one after the other. Honest officers like Sonawane are being killed by the corrupt with the patronage of our politicians. Crime is thriving all around.
So much suffering at the hands of our own people!
'A transparent government at all levels'
Name: Karan
Suggestion: The PM should declare to the nation that he will give a transparent government at all levels to make each and every government employee as honest as himself.
If he promises a transparent government, many will back him up with a revolutionary zeal, cutting across party lines.
If he forms a good core team which I imagine, hope and pray will be formed within hours of his declaration, they can put together a time table and correct all the shortcomings of the government. Within six months, we will see the emergence of a new and powerful nation.
'Issue coupons for essential items to the needy'
Name: Dr B K Tandon
City: Noida
Suggestion: Perceive the problem before it takes shape and take corrective action before it takes an ugly shape. Protecting influential people who are guilty and announcing measures which are an eye-wash do not help in building a public image.
Name: Divyapal
City: Mumbai
Suggestion: This government needs to help farmers increase their output and provide all necessary help as the consumption levels are about to grow in double digits in the future.
Name: Jaihada
City: Ajmer
Suggestion: Call for a JPC. Sack non-delivering ministers, ban the export of essential commodities, ban the trading of food items through share markets and remove all subsidies. Instead, issue coupons for essential items to the needy and crack down on the various mafias.
If the government doesn't see the writing on the wall, it must resign and hand over power to a non-political group to run the country for the next 20 years.
Earlier in the series:
Your Say: 'PM should retire and rest at home'
Your Say: 'Modi is the only leader, all others are looters'
'PM has to become a democratic dictator'
'The PM has forgotten that we elected him'