Roots of Frogging

Business analysts like to do SWOT analyses (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats). More logical minds than mine may want to attempt this exercise with greater care and study for corruption versus decency. For the moment, I’d like to concentrate on the roots of frogging.

Very clearly one of the roots of frogging is corruption. Since corruption represents an economic gain for the recipient, it is very possible to make a career of it and the safest area in which to commit this is in politics, especially in political circumstances where one controls the STPM (MACC body), the police and the judges. In fact it can be a very lucrative career – much better than a career in ordinary crime.

On the other hand, one possible root of frogging can be decency. Having seen how badly the economy and morals of the country are affected by corruption and abuse of power, a decent politician may want to attempt to frog to change a corrupt political environment into a decent one. However there is no economic gain. One therefore has great difficulties making a career of it. Not only that, there are many dangers and risks to life, family, property and economic lifelihood.

Therefore a SWOT analysis reveals a situation that is badly stacked against decency and very encouraging of corruption. DSAI should have done his homework and realized that the number of frogs against him versus the number of frogs for him will probably be in the region of 100:1. But he is an idealistic and moral person. He would not be popular and well-liked if he were not.

This situation does not augur well for the country. Corruption will always have economic advantage over decency. I believe that for the country to turn from corruption to decency, the people themselves have to make the effort and sacrifice, and not wait for career politicians to turn into good decent frogs.

It is no use cursing and swearing at Jelapang & co. when the people themselves have not cultivated decent professional politicians who can be trusted. It is the people who have to make the effort to fight for decency. Why curse and swear that political parties do not have decent candidates when they themselves think of politics only once in 5 years? Why expect political parties to do a decent job when they themselves avoid involvement in community service?

Every elections, the people wait for political parties to announce the candidates who will lobby for their support to get elected as their representatives. Why accept this scenario or process?

If the people themselves were to organize politically and cultivate decent persons from among their own ranks and then tell political parties that they want these persons to represent them, wouldn’t this be a change for the better? In fact political parties would be more than happy to accept politicians with strong roots in their community who are both morally and economically supported by their own communities, who have if not Toyota Camrys, at least a decent motorcycle or small car and a decent economic livelihood based within the community.

It is the same with teachers, firemen and nurses. These people from the honourable professions are expected to be self-sacrificing volunteers who have to look after themselves and their own livelihoods or at least expect only minimum wages from the community. In the meantime, the community expects long hours and high productivity as well as high level of responsibility and accountability.

It is my observation that sadly some communities are not really communities but neighbourhoods of strangers especially in towns and cities. When people do not know even their neighbours let alone trust them, how do they expect to control their representatives to make sure they remain loyal and faithful when even the political parties have problems?

I guess the people are also idealistic and moralistic. Maybe this is why monetarily motivated frogs have a great aversion to them and seem to jump away rather than towards them.

I believe the people deserve the government they get. If the people want a decent government, they themselves have to be decent. It is not enough trying to do your own thing, avoid the responsibility of social or community contribution and then expect your politicians to be decent, self-sacrificing servants who you can curse and swear at on your own terms.

If you do that, then according to the SWOT analysis, there will be a vacuum that criminals and gangsters can take advantage of if they are skilled at paying and looking after career politicians. Healthy communities can fight this by learning to organize and to empower themselves.

Read about how bad it can get if the community loses power to corrupt bureaucrats …

-Batsman