Ideal behavior of legislators is more important than ideology: Naidu
NEW DELHI : The Vice President of India and the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha M. Venkaiah Naidu stated on Sunday that idea behavior of the legislators is more important than ideology. Conduct of the legislators in the legislature, constituency and governing bodies is equally important.
He said a self introspection by the legislators on the work done by him/her on everyday basis is essential for self development. A good reading habit on the topics to be discussed in the legislatures is useful for the legislators to keep abreast and contribute to the deliberations on the developmental goals for the country.
Accessibility to the people and touring in the constituency will help the legislators to understand and address their issues properl.He further suggested that legislators should be regular and punctual in the legislatures.Mr Naidu was addressing a two days National Legislators’ Conference organized by the Lok Sabha Secretariate.
Mr Naidu stressed that Legislature is the central pillar of democratic governance. It is the voice of the people and articulates their hopes,aspirations and dreams through laws that govern their lives. The legislatures are mandated with the task of catalyzing nation building by propelling socioeconomic transformation. Legislation is the foremost function of legislators.
The representative functions of the legislatures emanates from the fact that the Members of Parliament and the State Legislatures are chosen by the people as their sovereign representatives and to speak for them.The oversight functions of the Legislatures relate to ensuring the accountability of the Governments, i.e. Executive.
This in effect means accountability to the people who are the ultimate sovereign authority. Highlighting the role of the legislators in the promotion of public good, the He said that the legislators perform a seminal role as a critical link between the people and the government by making the Government aware of the problems faced by the people.
He said that in the post independence period, our public governance system has yielded some appreciable results in various fields of literacy, life expectancy, health sector, etc, However, the country faces the emerging challenges such as international terrorism, global warming, climate change,provision of safe drinking water and sanitation to the people, inequality between men and women and urban and rural population, agrarian crisis, which need to be addressed. He urged upon the legislators to act as the agents of change.
He said that legislators have a greater role in changing the mindset of the people. The development should be the focus as people are demanding it and observing it. People should therefore be at the centre of developmental policies and we need to make them partners in development and there is a need for sustainable and inclusive development of the country.
The perception of the people about the legislatures is very important for the credibility and functioning of the important law making bodies.The Vice-President reiterated the resolution adopted on the occasion of the Golden Jubilee of Independence, 26th August to 1st September, 1997, in
which the parliamentarians had set certain standards and norms for preserving and enhancing the prestige of Parliament “more especially by maintaining the inviolability
