It should be a matter of pride to Rotarians in India that the newly minted Tamil Nadu Assembly has as many as 23 MLAs in a House of 234, which is nearly 10 per cent of the legislative body. What is more; of these 5 have been inducted into the cabinet, and includes S Keerthana, only 29, who has been given the heavyweight portfolio of Industries and Investment Promotion. An MSc in Statistics from the Puducherry University, she was closely involved in Tamil Nadu CM C Joseph Vijay’s campaign planning, grassroots outreach and youth mobilisation. Small wonder she has a following of more than 451,000 on Instagram. She has won from Sivakasi, which is famous for its firecrackers industry. During campaigning for her own seat, Keerthana had stressed the need for fireworks factories to concentrate on workers’ safety, healthcare and other welfare measures for their families.
Way back in 1775, Samuel Johnson had said “Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel”; of course he meant pseudo-patriotism. This was later changed to “Politics is the last resort for scoundrels” and attributed sometimes to Oscar Wilde (he certainly didn’t say this) and to George Bernard Shaw too. Apparently, there is no rock-solid evidence that Shaw said this either. But with the general disenchantment with politics across the world, especially in India, and with ‘nationalism’ (patriotism) becoming the new buzzword in India, both the expressions are widely used.
However, if Rotarians, who are true to Rotary’s core and idealistic credos of truth, fairness and equity, enter politics, and stick to these values, there is hope for change. If corruption levels can be arrested or reduced, and the funds thus saved in the exchequer are ploughed back into welfare schemes for the people, in areas such as water and sanitation, healthcare, enhancing livelihoods, adult literacy and children’s education, all areas familiar to this organisation, imagine what a mammoth difference can be made by those sitting at the helm in various government positions. We live in a cynical world; advancing years only harden cynicism because they often bring the ability to see through deceit, dishonesty and false claims. And you can easily slip into a pessimistic view on the world around you.
But youth thrive on optimism, positivity and idealism. The young are also getting aggressively articulate on voicing their concerns on environmental degradation and climate change, for the simple reason that they will live on this deteriorating planet for much longer. Luckily, the entire world is seeing a relatively younger crop of political leaders. If they can look at the world with a dash of hope, cheer and positivity, and use their energy and vitality to usher in positive change, we can still look forward to a better tomorrow… for all, and not only the privileged!
Just pull out and watch Keerthana’s video clips on the internet, and note the optimism she displays… makes you want to believe in these young agents of change…
Rasheeda Bhagat