The government needs to listen, learn and take advantage of its massive mandate — while it still can.
THE FIRST anniversary of the handover of power to the National League for Democracy-backed government will inevitably prompt much debate over how much progress has been made and the likely trajectory for the coming years.
It was a year of two halves. In the first six months the government earned a passing grade. The second was much tougher. Some significant events were outside the government’s control, yet it also scored a number of own goals.
Much of the discussion this week is likely to feature criticism of the NLD government and its perceived weaknesses.
Getting in early, former United States ambassador to Myanmar Mr Derek Mitchell penned an opinion piece for Nikkei Asian Review in which he urged a “course correction”.
He gave a laundry list of complaints he’d heard from people on the ground, including the lack of a clear economic policy, inefficient governance, lack of respect for civil society and the media, and poor communication, among many others.
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Frontier concurs wholeheartedly with this assessment. Rather than simply repeat it, though, we’d like to send a message to the NLD.
It’s time to listen. Don’t reject these criticisms out of hand. Take steps to avoid repeating the mistakes of the past year.
We all agree that the challenges are significant and there is insufficient capacity to address them. But the NLD has one major factor in its favour: public support. Unfortunately, it’s not making the most it.
Many of the problems the government is encountering are due to senior officials’ unwillingness to listen to advice, to consult and to properly communicate their plans.
They have cut themselves off from many people who want to help move the transition forward – and in the process robbed the government of the opportunity to benefit from the vast knowledge and experience on offer.
As a result, those whom the NLD could have depended upon to support the reform process have been left frustrated and disappointed.
It’s not clear exactly why the NLD has adopted this approach. But trust and loyalty have always been important within the NLD. After all, they were key survival traits in an organisation that faced near-constant harassment for decades. In that kind of environment, you never knew who was on your side.
This is a new era, though, and it’s time for the NLD to open up – for the future of both the party and the country.
So, expand your network of advisers. Lift the restrictions on party members meeting civil society. Hold regular press conferences. Explain your plans for the year head. Empower capable, younger members to take on more responsibility. Begin to develop a new generation of leaders for the future. Accept that you don’t always get things right – after all, nobody can make the perfect decision every time.
Be honest with the public about the country’s challenges – whether they are in education, the economy or the peace process – and what you think needs to be done to address them.
Genuinely embody the democratic values that you espouse, and which convinced the people to so overwhelmingly vote you into office. Regain control of the narrative. Wrest the momentum back from those who are seeking to undermine you.
And, whatever you do, don’t take your public support for granted. You might not suffer on April 1, but it won’t last indefinitely.
So listen, learn and take advantage of your massive mandate – while you still can.
This editorial was originally published in the March 30 issue of Frontier.