A needless extravagance

A needless extravagance

MPs will have something special to celebrate when they reconvene for an extra session of parliament on May 28 to debate the 2014 budget bill. After years of delay and wrangling over locations, a contract has been signed to build a palatial new parliament beside the Chao Phraya River in the Kiakkai area of Dusit district. It will carry a price tag of 12.2 billion baht to which must be added the cost of relocating the state agencies and school that formerly occupied the land along with the new furnishings, IT equipment and infrastructure.

Critics have slammed the project as a shameful waste of money. They say there is nothing wrong with the present building, opened in 1974 and since renovated. But parliamentary representatives cite the need for more offices, staff and parking space; a problem that could be eased by some judicious reorganisation because the building is rarely full. MPs frequently take paid study trips around the world. Surely they have noticed that some parliaments are smaller with fewer amenities than ours.

As lawmakers approach the mid-point of their four-year term, report cards show mixed results. There have been serious breakdowns in parliamentary discipline, decorum and the good manners expected of the people's representatives. This was highlighted by the brawling and attempted intimidation of the Speaker when MPs stormed his chair during one volatile debate and continual squabbles and bickering between representatives. These are usually heated extensions of the eternal conflict between the pro- and anti-Thaksin Shinawatra factions and their proxies.

Then there was the MP caught looking at an erotic image on his smartphone last year and the usual allegations of lawmakers taking clandestine naps and using their phones to place bets while out of sight at the back. Worst of all are those MPs whose only function is to represent themselves and who can more often be found in the clubhouse or outside the chamber making business deals. Their absence explains the high number of empty seats that have long been a feature of our House of Representatives when a debate is not being televised and there is no "home audience" to impress with arm-waving and eloquence. Of course there are also a number of diligent and caring MPs who always show up, contribute to debates and do the job they were elected to do. Sadly, they seem to be in a minority.

If the legislative branch of our government is failing in its function, then constituents who care should be asking why. A sumptuous new parliament will not make our system of government any more democratic. Perhaps our problem is that we rely too much on appearances and the outward trappings of democracy. When we actually come to practise the democratic ideal we seem to come unstuck and stumble into a maze of procedural problems, rules and obscure detail concerning the finer points of law.

This gives rise to an over-reliance on constitutional interpretations and past precedent. Hence the frequent recourse to the Constitution Court and the troubles that ensue. Time is also wasted in political negativity such as filing face-saving defamation lawsuits over inconsequential matters. Life would be easier if we could only get back to basics and apply simple common sense in solving some of these problems.

Democracy can be an elusive concept at the best of times but when lawmakers pay more attention to their vested interests than to the democratic principles they are sworn to uphold, it does not really matter how luxurious, large or expensive their debating chamber is. They have failed in their job.

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