By Zahid H Javali
During the elections, the MLAs and MPs impact the state and country, but if you want to know who impacts your immediate neighbourhood the most, it is your corporator. So, do you know your corporator? Do you know whom to vote for the next corporation elections? Have you ever gone to a Ward Committee meeting to voice your grievances? Have you complained on any of the phone apps and websites about civic issues? The culmination of all these efforts is the vote you give during the municipal polls. Therefore, knowing your corporator is critical.
No longer should one’s vote be based on a political party, caste, creed or business interests. Is the person really competent enough to address your neighbourhood concerns? Do they have the social service streak in them to stand up for what is right and walk the extra mile to seek justice? That’s the person you need to vote for. And this can begin by knowing your corporator. However, this is only the first step. The next phase is to engage with the corporator and ensure that they act on your complaints. Persist until they deliver. Form a team of people to pressurise them more. Expose them through the local media with hyper local publications like us.
The Bangalore Political Action Committee (B.PAC), a local non-profit, is doing something about this abject lack of information by spreading social media awareness campaigns on every ward corporator of Bengaluru. Using the data from the BBMP, the agency is using its social media platforms to spread awareness about the various corporators who govern the 198 wards in the city. Their names, photographs, addresses and phone numbers are being given in addition to a list of their roles and responsibilities. The underlying idea is for the citizens to become part of the solution.
However, we would urge B.PAC to also unearth other data like the promises the corporators have made and what they delivered in their tenure; the number of criminal cases against them, their achievements and educational qualifications, among others. This is something that Free A Billion, a non-profit did in Mumbai recently (see the photo above). Since most people who are unaware of their corporator need to have some idea of what the elected representatives have done before casting their votes, it would be better to give this essential information for the voters to decide. After all, not every resident will either have the courage, inclination or need to interact with the corporator. They will be a minority. However, the majority can assess the candidate by the pros and cons about the corporators standing for civic elections. Information is power. Know your corporator before casting your precious vote. It will make a difference to your life!