Parliamentarians' noble mission

Parliament tomorrow resumes its noble and indispensable work after the Christmas break. One very much hopes that at the very beginning of the new year all parliamentarians reflected in depth on their various duties, among which that of being the light of the nation and the salt of the earth. They should never forget that their sacrosanct duty to lead the people with clear ideas and never to create confusion in people's minds.

All those of good will rightly expect light from parliamentarians. Never heat nor sound. Like all other responsible people, parliamentarians too have to ask questions and seek guidance, irrespective of party discipline.

For them too, the light from the star over Bethlehem should be their guide, and they too should seek that inner light which is what all wise men will always seek.

As much as in court one expects heated arguments between lawyers on the side of the prosecution and those on the side of the defence, one also expects heated arguments in Parliament, between members on both sides of the House. A political slant is expected from both sides. But parliamentarians have no right at all to deny facts, no privilege at all to say untruths and no right at all to abuse of their privilege in the execution of their noble mission. If they are jealous of their privileges they should be just as jealous not to offend others.

Parliament tomorrow is expected to begin a two-day (or perhaps three-day) debate on European Union membership and the referendum to be held shortly. No doubt that a debate on such an important matter conducted at the level of soundbites and mere slogans would not serve the national interest. It might even be counter-productive.

In this case too, the song depends on the singers... and chances are, politicians "short of hearing" will get out of tune, in which case they should better keep their mouths shut, and very prudently and intelligently listen to other singers. Parliamentarians too should talk when they have something to say, and not talk just to say something.

At this point, one regrets to point out that during the adjournment some MPs, quite often, make long speeches which would not get them a pass mark in an exam.

It is appropriate to quote from the "Statement of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales" (October 1996) on the mission of politicians: "Not the least of the concerns we have at this time is the low status of politicians in public estimation, which is neither justified by the evidence nor good for the health of democracy. Politics is an honourable vocation, which often exacts great personal cost from those who engage in it, and from their families. The fact that some politicians from time to time fall short of the highest standards is not grounds for dismissing the whole clan of politicians as unworthy of respect.

"At the same time politicians must be especially careful not to use, or to appear to use, their privileged position for personal gain. Those politicians who have, by their behaviour, contributed to a climate of distrust must bear some considerable responsibility. Part of the responsibility must also lie with the highly partisan quality of public political debate, where it has become almost customary to attribute the worst motives to one's political opponents.

"Politicians of one party should show more respect towards those of other parties. Those who engage in political abuse can expect retaliation in kind, and they are inviting the public to believe the worst about all politicians of every political persuasion."