Talking about the UPA -- 2 government's (or is it from 10,
Janpath's?), the media 'blitzkrieg' as it has been coined to be, it is actually
degrading for him, that his government decided to come with this regular
communication exercise, talking to 5 chief editors behind closed doors, the
plan being it would be organised every week!
This frequency of 'every week' shows him to be too desperate
to reach out (the Reaching out is commendable, the Desperation is suspiciously
unbecoming of.), too much answerable, truly degrading for the Prime Minister's
chair, no matter whatever might have transpired. Even to the most apolitical
common citizen, it would seem to be a risky or dangerous decision to make this
format at this moment -- his say, his decisions, not even being videographed,
to be reaching Indian citizens through the perspectives and translations of 5
newspaper editors? If he wants to communicate with and address the common
citizen, Now is the time he should have gone visible, audible and live. Even a
no-brainer would perceive an insecurity in his leader.
As it is, his body language is not assertive, his advisors
should have suggested a workshop for him long ago, developing his kinesics. Whatever body-hits the govt might have taken
from all the criticism, it wouldn't have reached this level, if he had appeared
on national TV even once with a few confident words (probably soon after the
CWG mess went out of hand), the political opposition wouldn't have initiated
with that much fire-power last year -- the integrity-propriety-honesty personal
image factor could have used to his advantage.
He seems to be running an office. Though it is an office
alright, the Prime Minister's Office in India's political system doesn't
conform to the perception of an office. If he wants to re-stress the fact that
it is not practically possible to whip every butt in the other ministerial
portfolios, the cabinet might as well have put a MK Gandhi's or a BC Roy's
brain ('whose' is highly debatable which can be pondered over some other time),
all mummified, in the PM's chair and gone about the way it has gone -- Kapil
Sibal, Chidambaram, Moily et al shooting off with poorly co-ordinated
statements when the nation wanted to know, going above the Oppositions
bang-bang, about what's actually going on in Delhi.
The UPA-2 is perhaps the worst where political advising and
PR are concerned. Ill-co-ordinated, ill-timed, horribly prioritized. Even for
the staunchest supporter respecting his personal image, the damage has been
done. This is enough free fodder for the Opposition's agenda for the
parliamentary elections slated for 2014.
Most unfortunate.
Sent from my BlackBerry®Smartphone
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Dr.Anirban Chaudhuri
Consultant Physician
Mumbai, India
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"..and I, whatever I did, I did it my way."
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