Political landscapes

Societies operate on two economic layers. To give a few examples of this situation; for instance, when we buy a product, we do not think about the human labor involved in every stage of its production. This is one side of the matter. Then there is the other side. It is this: while paying the price for a product we like, we do not even realize that we have compared, or even equated, the value created by our own labor with the labor that adds value to the product we are purchasing. Even if we are not aware of the process, the process works and is constantly working.

The negative image that politics has recently taken on is not unique to politics alone; it is an event where the social pathology lurking at the bottom emerges on the soft underbelly of the system. So much so that what we see in politics today is blamed on politics because all kinds of individual fluctuations—such as corruption, betrayal, disloyalty, and failure to keep one's word—that are experienced in almost every segment of society but cannot surface, are reflected in politics. However, the primary culprit is not politics, but the corrosive effect on individuals and society of the moral abyss into which the system drags society. In other words, politics is the symptomatic reflection area where the inflammation accumulated in the body manifests itself. Let us then delve deeper into the issue.

Our question is this: If politics is becoming this depersonalized and ugly, and if what is happening is not the root cause but a reflection of a kind of different formation and causes, what is the root cause, and in which layer of society and for what reason does it originate? Since the basis of the problem is reflected in the indicators at the extremes, we can start the analysis by addressing extreme issues. How is it that parliamentary candidates, after receiving votes from the electorate based on the party they are candidates for, can trample on the judgment of the voter in one fell swoop and shift to other parties? It is necessary to analyze the issue not at the stage of changing parties, but starting from the individual's stage of entering politics. With what motive do people enter politics? Why and through what process does one join a political party? Is the issue party principle, or is it the party program? Please do not leave the analysis of these areas to me, but do not lose sight of these data either. Let us look at the material perks (not advantages!) that a person attains when they become a member of parliament: salaries, endless social rights for themselves and their immediate family, the fact that our magnanimous people, instead of expecting them to be public servants, exhibit a masochistic pathology by bestowing the title of "state dignitary" upon the representative they elected and almost worshipping them, and the fact that all media channels are placed at their disposal like a flood. Are all these opportunities a blessing to be pushed aside when the economy is increasingly tightening? Facing the rise of parliamentary perks while the country's problems are tightening is a situation that only a person with prophetic qualities could resist. The erosion of human morality emerges at this very stage. When the perk of arranging jobs for family members in the public or private sector is added to this package, once a hook is cast into parliament, the rest follows on its own. The second stage is that, depending on the position and office in politics, some additional incomes immediately appear alongside the politician as a moral abrasive, because the other party's perk is also directly dependent on the politician's own perk. Especially in an environment of perks where the judiciary is politicized, supervisory institutions like the Court of Accounts are partially sidelined, or in short, where "stones are tied and dogs are unleashed," even the slightest "do you know who I am" or "pick a spot on the map" attitudes toward a traffic police officer can strip a person of their humanity. In such an environment, no one has any conscience left! Even in an Imam Hatip graduate or religious official who aims for a moral generation, there is no trace of the justice of Caliph Omar. What I mean is that we must see that the filth that surfaces after everything possible has been done to lead people astray and divert them from rights and law is merely a result.

Let us think, can an objection to this structure arise from society? Why shouldn't a mentality trying to become a millionaire with the one-in-a-million probability of the national lottery think of reaching these blessings one day; whether it is a footballer unaware of the field, a rally champion, or a private driver, it does not matter. The point is to get a foothold in parliament once. There is no need for effort for the rest, there is not even a need to go to parliament often, as long as there is no task of raising a hand for the chairman!

To complete the foundations of this thought in future articles, see you next week...