Put the Politicians' skin in the game

The Politicians today have nothing to lose; be it when the terrorists strike, or even if an inept minister makes glaring blunders. By carving out separate set of facilities for themselves, they have created a safety net and thus insulated themselves from the incompetent system that exists today. Only by removing this safety net we can compel the Politicians to better the system and improve the facilities offered to the common man.

The agenda for the people should be three pronged:
1. Ensure the Politicians get the same facilities (especially security) as the common man.
Today by allowing them to allocate special security for themselves, we have let them subvert the improvement of security of the masses. Since they get 24-hour water supply and unlimited power, they do not see the need to improve these facilities for the common man. If the Politicians get the same facilities as everyone else, they will make it their prerogative to stem the rot and work towards betterment of the infrastructure.

2. Ensure the Politicians retire after the age of 60.
There is no retirement age for a Politician; they stay in politics till they die. Precisely for this reason, it is impossible to get legislation which curbs the Politicians' powers. By putting an end date to their Political career, we will make it imperative for them to put limits on their powers. Else they will bear the brunt of such limitless power when it goes into someone else's hands. This will ensure the Politicians themselves bring the accountability issue to fore as they will be a part of the masses when they retire.

3. Ensure the people have a right to recall the representatives they have elected.
If people are given the right to elect someone, they should also be given the right to recall that person. The lack of such a rule elevates the elected representatives to a higher pedestal and they become unassailable and a law unto themselves. Since the people pay for their salaries, they are our employees; but unfortunately we do not have a right to fire them if they are incapable of serving the people they represent. The people today are requesting for Accountability from their representatives; with this additional power, the people can demand it.