Soapbox:

Lopsided democracy

By Samir Sobhi

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The fifth congress of the National Democratic Party convened this week, obviously to discuss all the things that the nation really needs. I will tell you what the nation really needs: the nation needs another party, just to keep politics on an even keel. The nation needs a counterpoint in its political life, so that voters may have reason to show up at the polls.

Monopoly in politics may give the ruling party a sense of security, but it is a false one. It is far better to have a worthy opponent. It is far better to have a vigorous political life in which all can take part. Watching the elections in America one gets a sense of the political energy that true rivalry can create. So why don't we create another party, perhaps from a coalition of the two-dozen or so small parties in this country?

I am not trying to denigrate the ruling party. It has its achievements. It has managed to recruit one million plus supporters in the past few years. It has co-opted some of the big names in politics, economy, business and the media. And it has come up with a formula for tackling the current world economic crisis. But monopoly is monopoly, whether it is political or economic.

I have an idea: why don't we have schools to teach us democracy? We need someone to make sure that democracy is a competitive game. We need a referee making sure that political rivalry thrives. There was once a man named Sayed Galal who often won the parliamentary seat for Bab Al-She'riya. His success was due to a simple trick. He would motivate his constituency by creating projects benefiting the ordinary folks. Perhaps we need more parliamentarians that do the same.

This week's Soapbox speaker is senior writer at Al-Ahram .