Politics in Development of a Nation - Essay Example

Hsc module c Introduction Politics constitutes an integral part in the development of a nation and its citizen. In essence, politics for part of living for citizens of any country. Several studies have revealed that politics dictates the economic progress of a country. In this regard, political upheavals result in dwindling economic performance while political stability promotes economic and infrastructural developments in a country. Apparently, politics influences the social construction and activities of a community in a given country. The basis of politics revolves around representing the general population in leadership (Melanie & Quinnie, 1996). It is imperative to recognize that different countries have varied political structures. Therefore, people are represented differently in different countries. In essence, it is essential to study the politics of different nations to identify the dynamisms in politics. An analysis of representation of people in politics The society is usually stratified into political, socio-cultural and economic aspects. The socio-cultural aspect entails the people’s way of life and the organization of social institutions. The economic aspect is concerned about the people’s source of livelihood. The primary focus in the economic division is how people earn a living. Finally, the political organ deals with leadership and administration of services in the country. In essence, the political organ affects the operation of the other divisions and, therefore, emerges as a sensitive aspect (Reynolds, 2000). Apparently, all people cannot be involved directly in leadership and, therefore, representatives have to be chosen from the general population. Essentially, there exist numerous ways that can be used to choose political leaders from the general population. For instance, the leaders are chosen through elections or appointments. The Australian government operates a democratic government where all eligible candidates are offered a level ground to participate in the country’s leadership. In most case, people representation in politics is facilitated by the general elections. In this case, the citizens are allowed to participate in the general elections and elect leaders of their choice. The elected leaders become representatives of the common citizens in the political arena. All the political decisions made by the elected and appointed members reflects on the ideas of the general population of the country. Therefore, the elected leaders act as the custodians of the interests of the local people and thereby their actions significantly influence the operations of a country (Reynolds, 2000). Representing people is not a smooth task since it involves unlimited responsibilities. For instance, one is expected to execute the assigned task and also perform personal duties such as attending to family needs, being with the family and many others. However, it is expected that once individuals have been elected or appointed to represent others, they should be committed to serving the public. Unfortunately, once some people enter into office or parliament, they forget to serve the people who elected them. Several studies have shown that most politicians concentrate on bettering their lives once they land in public offices. It is quite clear that a substantial amount of money budget for developing the nation ends upon the pockets of just a few politicians. A critical analysis of the predicament facing Australia reveals that most politicians have used their political power government to amass public resources (Melanie & Quinnie, 1996). Some scholars argue that the issue of corruption has dragged the economic progress of Australia behind. In essence, equitable distribution and appropriate use of the available resources can be major drivers to a predictable economic development. Pilkington (2002) states that the nature and level of politics in a country dictate the influence that the country has in the region. It is quite apparent that countries with well-developed political structures are far much ahead of the other nations in terms of developments. Apparently, research has shown that politics has a significant influence on developmental projects in a country. The Australian politics have experienced consecutive advancement over the past few decades. In essence, the country has a political structure that is envied by many of its neighbors. After being under the full control of Britain in the colonial era, Australia has made massive progress in developing an outstanding political structure that is suited for the Australian people. In this regard, it can be said that Australia has made notable steps in ensuring that the necessary infrastructure for the development of an influential political structure is provided. People and politics are two different entities that operate on a similar platform. According to Melanie & Quinnie (1996), politics facilitates organized existence of people in a country since they provide guidelines to be followed in conducting various national operations. Essentially, citizens of a country are affiliated to certain political parties. The loyalists of the various political affiliations expect their party leaders and executive members to represent them on various occasions. It is quite apparent that all people cannot be involved in running the affairs of a political party or the nation as a whole. Therefore, representatives must be chosen to present people’s grievances to the relevant authorities. In this regard, it can be observed that people and politics work together in navigating the tough challenges of life. Generally, politics is perceived to be dirty and dangerous, especially to people who have little or no experience in the political environment. Research has portrayed that a good number of people lose their lives to political mayhems every year. Apparently, people are always obsessed with the desire to assume top political positions. Some scholars argue that some people have ventured into politics as a career, and they can do anything to protect their positions. Studies have shown that people join politics for varied reasons and, therefore, respond differently to challenges experienced in the political environment. The reasons why people join politics can be seen clearly when the individuals are assigned the opportunity to represent the community in national leadership. Some people join politics to become famous, others join to become rich, others join for business security and others join to serve the society. In this regard, it can be recognized that politics is very competitive as people struggle to hold a position to fulfill their desires (Pilkington, 2002). Research has shown that the rural areas and region that have little natural resources are poorly represented in the political scene. Reynolds (2000) argues that the remote areas are usually ignored since they are considered to have insignificant influence on the economy. Moreover, politics is not well develop in remote areas, and this affects representation in the national governance. In essence, poor representation of people in the remote areas has resulted in poor infrastructure in the areas. Basically, priority is usually given to regions that have a high potential for generating income. Therefore, the rural areas remain underdeveloped and also receive little resources from the government. In this regard, strategic mechanisms should be established to ensure equitable distribution of national resources and good representation of people from all parts of the country. Conclusion The world of politics plays a significant role in development. However, for politics to work effectively as a tool for development, all regions of the country should be represented equally. The Australian government should establish structures that facilitate full representations of people from every part of the country. Essentially, a country cannot develop politically whereas some regions have been abandoned. The government should establish strategies that facilitate representation of the vulnerable groups of people such as the disabled, women, youths and children. In addition, effective strategies should be established to ensure sound representation of the remote areas to enhance equitable development. In summary, necessary mechanisms should be devised to ensure that every group of people is well represented. Reference list: Melanie, P & Quinnie, S. (1996). Noel Person, an Australian history of us all presentation. Retrieved on 4th July 2014 from : https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CCQQFjAB&url=http%3A%2F%2Fschmenglish.weebly.com%2Fuploads%2F1%2F0%2F7%2F2%2F10725955%2Fnoel_pearson_-_presentation.pptx&ei=ZoaXVbeJNMedoQS-nqPACg&usg=AFQjCNEGrBTf8iefOYxNkJvZ6pA9SH4o3g&sig2=AbIchCVtSMd4-J7s3qBZNg&bvm=bv.96952980,d.cGU Pilkington, D. (2002). Follow the rabbit-proof fence. St. Lucia, Qld: University of Queensland Press. Reynolds, H. (2000). Why werent we told?: A personal search for the truth about our history. Ringwood, Vic: Penguin. Read More