The intent of any election is to put to test the mechanisms by which modern representative democracy is operationalized and made pro-electorates. An election, therefore, is a formal, informed and conscientious decision-making process which the electorates or a population chooses an individual to a hold a public or a corporate office in TRUST on their behalf. This form of representative democracy is practiced through a suffrage, that is, the right to vote and be voted in an elections, the right or chance to make or express an opinion and or participate in a decision-making process on matters that affect one’s life.
Despite the growing public appreciation of the vital role of representative democracy in nation building and economic development, still there exist the challenges of building a sustainable democracy that is purely based on the basic principles and values of good governance.
On balance, though, it is possible to make an association between direct democracy and the representative democracy which may give us what we call “participatory democracy”.
The world over, participatory democracy is being seen as the best bet for tackling and to a significant extent fixing the limits and handicaps of representative democracy. Participatory democracy denotes the form in which the people literary rule themselves, either directly or indirectly through their democratically elected leaders and governance institutions.
In advancing self-governance principles, participatory democracy becomes an invaluable tool as it involves extensive, informed and active engagement of citizens through structured public education, public participation and engagement in the self-governing process and deepening of local democracy as a means to broadening the wider national democratic space. Participatory democracy unlike representative democracy, therefore, means a government NOT just for the people BUT by, with and of the PEOPLE.
Where representative democracy is held and practiced, people and more so the electorates tend to cherish and worship what is now increasingly referred to as “community or tribal kingpins” regardless of their leadership ineptness. From this point of view, therefore, it is safe to argue that participatory democracy is a positive complement to its representative counterpart, and sometimes, even as a potential successor to representative democracy. This calls for the need for a sharp paradigm shift on our view of what actually elections holds in store for the electorate whenever an election is held or planned to be held.
Aware of the importance of participatory democracy, civic organizations and several other public agencies the world over have invested significant resources – financial, human capital, policy frameworks and pieces of legislations in an attempt to promote citizen engagement and public participation in policy-making, governance processes, and public service and investment considerations not to mention the quest of the public to engage citizens in the design and development of public programs and projects to implement specific public policies.
This has seen many governments come up with several pieces of legislation and regulatory frameworks to promote citizen participation in democratic processes. The aim here is to promote and sustain public diplomacy. Public diplomacy aims to promote exchange and dialogue between the citizens, their elected leaders and appointed public officers with the aim to improve mutual respect, understanding and tolerance between them as well as promote civic awareness on significance of good governance, peace and stability, public cohesion and integration and continued dialogue between the public citizenry and their public officials.
As recently observed in the United States of America’s presidential elections, the phenomena of the ‘silent majority’ in politics can produce quite unexpected outcomes in elections. Citizens may sometimes get totally what they are ill prepared for in what we refer to as representative democracy. This has led to several post elections traumas expressed normally through post-election violence and civil unrests in most parts of the world. Initially this was common in Africa but today we experience the same in one of the most powerful democracies in the whole world, the United States of America and even in Britain (Brexit experience).
What, therefore, can emerging democracies do to entrench and benefit from participatory democracy that is truly people-centered?
Lobby groups such as Right Elections exists to make young democracies embrace and practice participatory democracy and good governance that is anchored on the outcomes of RIGHT ELECTION that makes the voters to enjoy the experience of voting in a General Election and eradicate the shocks of BAD ELECTIONS.
To entrench participatory democracy in young and emerging democracies such as the third world nations, especially in Africa, it is imperative to note that democracy is a process of continuous growth and development of the masses (electorate) and even governments and the civil society organizations championing the cause for RIGHT ELECTIONS and ELECTIONS CAMPAIGNS. The growth is so gradual and continuous that the public awareness, civic education and voter sensitization programs on the nature, practice and the role of democracy and democratic processes in light of the Civic Rights and Responsibilities cannot be overemphasized.
Citizens’ paradigm shift from personality centered (‘our people’) to issue-based (‘value and policy based’) judgment of persons contesting political offices at whatever level then becomes a paramount recipe for behavior change and paradigm shift towards an increasingly participatory democracy whereby the citizen is active not only in the preparation and adoption of the standard of governance and criteria for electing the leaders to govern them, but also the citizen is active in its application or in the evaluation of its efficiency.
It is, however, regrettably noted that elections in most developing countries only represent the definite beginnings of democratization and not possibly entrenching the democracy itself. Issues like tribal/ethnic influence, gender discrimination, corruption, voter bribery, vote rigging, negative attitude and voter apathy still play significant role in the outcomes of elections. The result in this scenario is an election without democracy and people’s true desire, will and power of choice being put the periphery. To this end, the commitment of the political elites, the ruling class, the civil society organizations, advocacy groups and all other sundry elections stakeholders to build a truly democratic society is required to advance the tenets of participatory democracy.
Disappointingly, in most third world countries, especially in Africa where poverty and civic ignorance is still a thorn in the flesh, many political elites will always capitalize on the electorates’ vulnerabilities to brainwash them into voting for representative democracy (our people, our person) and not participatory democracy (self-governance by, for, with and of the people).
It is against this backdrop and after thorough research for an organization that could usher in a paradigm shift from Representative Democracy School of Thought to a Participatory Democracy School of Thought that an Election Management Body (EMB) is established to support credible democratic processes.
Comparatively, Right Elections, like Ushahidi that was used to monitor the recently concluded U.S. elections, takes a holistic approach to supporting international democracy building, contributing across almost all areas of its service by applying appropriate technology and outstanding international experience to building of local democracy and democratic institutions. Secure election management and voting solutions are helping organizations around the globe increase and improve participatory democracy, citizen empowerment and public transparency via innovative technology; in other words, innovative democracy. These are some of the assets that an independent, Election Management Body, brings on the table to help support the strengthening of democracy in emerging democracies in African and beyond.
With elections of different organizations and even Kenya’s national elections fast approaching, the country will be keen to understand the role of independent EMBs are playing an integral role towards democratizing the economy.
* The writer is the CEO of Right Elections®.
Email: dboi@rightelections.org