I have been following the run up to Singaporean General Elections very keenly online and on the print media (read Straits Times) as this is the first time I am following democratic elections being in the place in a very long time as I spent a very long time in Oman which is a Monarchy in its purest form. Singapore is small by global standards, but its strategic geo-political coordinates and its unique demographic make up makes it a case study for meritocratic governance and how a place sans any resources made it from Third World to the First World. I grew up in Mumbai, India in the steaming cauldron of democracy in India…India has the most vibrant chaotic democracy which is very feudal in nature with the fuel driving being money and muscle power. It is almost impossible for a middle class chap who is interested to participate in the electoral process to contest elections and to win unless he is having money and muscle backing him. A Shashi Tharoor is an exception, a global personality in his own right- an asset to any administration with his acumen. More educated technocrats like him should enter politics to bring in a sense of competence in the system. Although a Jairam Ramesh or a Kapil Sibal are doing a great job, they are very few and far in between. Institutional mechanisms are not there tap the best of talent in the system to contest elections.

The People’s Action Party in Singapore- the ruling party since independence; selects its candidates for the elections with a very scientific recruitment process, head hunting for the best talent to fight the polls and eventually taking up public office. The Singaporean Cabinet is filled with ‘A’ Players with degrees from Ivy League and Oxbridge, who were at the top of their respective professions. A Singaporean MP earns 13000 SGD per month and a cabinet minister earns a salary equal to the top management in corporations as the pay is linked to the private sector. This attracts the best of talent. The PAP uses the same methodology Shell uses to hire its top management. The candidates this time contesting the elections includes a former army chief, top civil servants and professors.

Its technocratic culture is spreading to the opposition too, a harvard educated lawyer and civil servants are contesting on opposition tickets. Being a very urban society, social media is having a big role in the electoral dialogue in Singapore. Websites like the Online Citizen and Temasek Review are devoting a lot of pixel space to the elections. Straits Times Online has a separate micro-site for the elections. I do agree that the talent of the leadership plays a game changing role in the governance of a nation. Asian nations who suffer a ‘governance deficit’ have to learn something from ‘the tiny red dot’ on the map on how to build up institutional capital. As there has been democratic single party rule here, long term planning has been possible although the same cannot be said of West Bengal. As the former Afghan Finance Minister Ashraf Ghani says – ‘ the difference between rich and poor countries is not money but mechanisms’… Singapore has not only the mechanisms but also the political will to drive pro active policies which is being demonstrated in the election run up here… Politics & Public Service is about making a difference

I was not really surprised by the vibrancy of the agitation led by 73 year old career activist and Gandhian Anna Hazare for the implementation of the ‘Lokpal Bill‘ which is an anti corruption legislation try to deter top officials from engaging in graft- which is is the second nature of public life in India, where election tickets are auctioned off to the highest bidder irrespective of the candidates credentials. With the spree of cases of graft in India exposed in the media from the CWG fiasco to the 2G scam; the youth in the country has been disgruntled with the ‘governance deficit‘ in the country.

The global scenario is quite receptive towards social and political upheaval from Tunisia to Yemen, not to forget Tahrir Square in Cairo to Globe round about in Sohar, Oman to Pearl Square in Manama. This churning has been catalyzed and facilitated by the trans formative power of Social Media, the Google Executive in Cairo to facebookers across the Middle East; Web 2.0 is playing a role which defies conventional political authority. The power of civil society to create content for their cause is a game changer. The role social media is playing to mobilize people at a spot, impacting collective consciousness of the public to drive change has been demonstrated in revolutions in Ukraine, Georgia and recently in the Arab World. The revolts we are talking about here is something which I would term as ‘First Order Transformations’ ; its a fight to ensure basic. democratic civic liberties in oppressive and archaic regimes. Its important to bring in people’s voices in to the policy making platforms even if it means voting in Muslim Brotherhood in power or the Shia Nationalist parties as Walid in Bahrain. This scenario is not ideal for the western powers as these are anti American in ideological posturing like Hamas in Palestine.

The policy reform which Social Crusader Anna Hazare has been trying to bring in since the last four decades is not really new, and every time its been stalled under some pre text as no corrupt politician or civil servant, would like to have an anti graft legislation hovering around his neck. The major difference is this time around is that civil society and youth in particular are fed up of the system and they want to make a difference. They see a Gandhi like figure in Mr. Hazare to spearhead the movement for change, the Lokpal Bill is just a contextual weapon; a metaphor. The NGO movement Web-site Avaaz is getting thousands of hits every hour on its Anna Hazare struggle webpage. The English electronic media is supporting this initiative as well as cable TV eye balls are in their millions. The NRI community is contributing via the web, voicing its support. Similar copy cat demonstrations are growing across the country in support of Anna Hazare and the Government is responding to the protests by taking pro-active changes.

The question is whether this movement can garner traction to scale up in to a meaningful civil society drive to force crucial institutional reform beyond the single topic of anti graft legislation. I am happy to see the educated middle class finally wake up out of its slumber and join the agitation for change. We are viewing a Second Order Transformation to make democracy to what democracy should be- by the people and for the people. This vital so that we keep this system as a system of checks and balances and not a monarchy and oligarchy in the clothing of ‘one man, one vote’ paradigm. Thats a system we need, and I hope thats a system we work towards from now on…..

This article is the first in the line of the social innovation conversation that I had initiated in the morning today by a short post. Corporate Social Responsibility is the new business buzzword in corporate circles  regarding sustainability reporting  and with the advent of ISO 26000- a voluntary standard concerning compliance to social norms and sustainable development. Shell was one of the first companies to adopt a triple bottom line approach towards reporting after the Southern Nigeria delta fiasco in the 1990’s when a civic movement towards emancipation of the oil rich but development poor was quelled by the military regime of Gen. Abacha and Shell got a bad name as these were their development block leases. There were allegations regarding poor environmental pollution control practices and corresponding health impacts found in the Delta by Harvard Medical School Researchers.

Initiatives such as the Global Reporting Initiative are compelling MNC’s to go green via regular sustainability reporting which covers Social aspects as well as Environmental parameters. The current CSR paradigm is towards compliance and getting branding brownie points; its essentially green washing, where the Sustainability Managers are marketing men and orient every dollar spent on social projects into an ROI metric based on eye balls garnered! The trans formative social enterprise/community development movement in the Philippines is called Gawad Kalinga founded by Bro. Tony Meloto. GK in Filipino language means to “give care” or “to award care”.  GK partners corporates such as Shell and paint manufacturers/construction material providers on a co-branding model to catalyze social impact beyond tokenism and green washing. GK builds sustainable communities and provide sustainable livelihoods which the Filipino Governments in succession have not able to render in the grossly biased remittance based economy. Bro. Tony features in Shell advertisements and enables a win-win model for both.

In the Singaporean Context, corporates can tie up with Aidha or the World Toilet Organization to gain visibility as well as  implement wide scale social impact in communities in South East Asia. Work Integration Social Enterprises can tie up with MNC’s to enable inclusive job creation (The Singaporean Government has a ComCare Fund to seed fund SE’s).

Grameen Movement in Bangladesh has opened Social Businesses with Danone to sell nutrion food to the BoP market at an affordable rate and has transformed communities with Grameen Phone. Corporates should use CSR as an instrument to create social capital in the communities that they operate, moving beyond the odd campaign here and there.

This next level of CSR and Business- Community Engagement is vital to providing services that are non existent in many third world nations. Governance in Singapore is the envy of many countries globally as it is the biggest Social Enterprise itself!

 

Today I am getting back to one the  core ideological pillars of this ideation platform- Social Innovation and International Development. Yesterday I was a Facilitator and Speaker at Symposium Neue Thinken II- A Social Innovation Event of the AIESEC NUS Projects Team of which I was the research director and one of the co-founders of the project itself. It was an amazing event bringing together change agents and social entrepreneurs like Bernise of SYNC, Aseem of Give,sg and Cindy of Eco Travel Services on a single page.  It was a treat interacting with speakers, the organizing team and the enthusiastic participants spending a valuable Saturday prior to the NUS Exam Season with us.

Technology is the leveler to catalyze systemic services to the bottom billion. But its Sociology that shapes society and its nature of use. We have to use the Design Thinking approach to create products and services that are user centric for the people at the resource poor social strata. This article is the beginning of a conversation in this area of thought intersecting-leveraging technology, entrepreneurial spirit and global  issues like access to water and low cost health care to create systemic change one community at a time.

Barack Hussein Obama came to office in 2009 with a message of change and of hope; the first african american to hold office was it self monumental in nature. His historic address in Berlin laid the pitch for a rock star president to enter office. He came in at a time of great crisis…The mess in Iraq and Af-Pak along with the sub-prime depression with partisan politicking does not make a ideal start to a presidential stint. Obama is a thinker, an intellectual who was the first black editor of the Harvard Law Review, taught Constitutional Law  at Chicago Law School and had authored two best sellers before he entered office. He is said to think too long before he takes a decision on a critical matter, finds consensus and middle ground in all his legislative battles and policy disputes. This latest Libya Crisis is a test case, he is said to have acted too late and has France take the lead in the civil war situation. His major achievement to date is the passage of the Health care legislation, although drastically watered down due to the heated debate over universal healthcare and the Tea Party grass roots movement whose face is Ms. Palin (Her supporters got the mandate in the mid term polls) and has laid the ground work for a presidential bid in 2012.

The Tea Party movement has grown in strength due to the apparent in-effectiveness of Obama to convert his promises into reality. But getting legislation through congress in a partisan atmosphere is next to impossible in its original context sans compromises. Although Obama has not closed Gitmo, or made significant headway in withdrawing troops from Afghanistan or on gay rights.. He exudes an aura of positivist sentiment  conveyed by his Nobel address. His efforts in bridging understanding between the Islamic and Western Civilizations by his Cairo and Jakarta keynote speeches are monumental. His aggressive policies to promote clean tech and science & tech tertiary education are a significant step towards America regaining lost territory in Innovation. His 2011 State of the Union Address was a stunner! The man has a vision, probably a man ahead of his time ala Jimmy Carter. According to present sentiment in the US..Obama is not going to get a second term in Office (I hope he does; he needs time to implement his vision) , May be he will be a good one term president that laid the ground work for a vibrant post war America… America needs a thinker in office not a reality show star and small town beauty queen…

I have discussed Kashmir with my South Asian Friends; Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi over a long time in the Middle East and South East Asia…They all have differing opinions over the matter..Indians claim total rights over the disputed Himalayan region, Pakistani’s want to turn Sirinagar into Islamkot and my friends from Dhaka wish that Kashmir would be another independent Muslim majority nation in Southern Asia. There are 600.000 troops based in Kashmir, more than total coalition forces in Af-Pak and Iraq. Kashmir or atleast the Indian controlled territorial part has been a bleeding would since the British left the Sub Continent in 1947. India and Pakistan have fought 2 wars and several low level conflicts, killing and wounding millions of soldiers and civilians.  Kashmir to India is what Kosovo is to Serbia, a nationalistic propaganda instrument, sans any economic usefulness although its geopolitical ramifications in the chess game of South Central Asia is critical.

Kashmir was never an organic part of India actually, a Muslim Majority state ruled by a Hindu King who decided to cede to India after Partition on agreeing on to a special constitutional package (Article 370 for instance) which was never honored by India sadly.  India has conveniently ignored the numerous resolutions by the UN for a plebe cite in Kashmir.  The integration into India was the result of the Machiavellian genius of Sardar Patel, the first Home Minister of Independent India. This is a well acknowledged fact that in the Media that Elections in Kashmir in the 1980’s were rigged in favor of pro India factions. The separatist uprising in 1989 in Kashmir which lead to the genocide and displacement of innocent Kashmiri hindus from their mother land is a human tragedy not acknowledged completely. The cross border militancy into Indian Kashmir bled Indian security forces by a thousand cuts, a phrase coined by former military ruler of Pakistan General Zia ul Haq.

Years of dialogue by the Indian and Pakistani Governments with each other as well as with the separatist Hurriyat elements, which hold an observer status in the Organization of Islamic Conference Organization have not yielded anything. This has resulted in the balkanization of Kashmir from a Kali (delicate petal in Hindi-Urdu) drawing from the title of the Hindi Phillum- Kashmir Ki Kali in the 1960’s to a fallen and dried part of a flower. Kashmir is a cartographic minefield as well, Jammu being Hindu and Ladakh being the only Buddhist region in India.. The trouble lies in only a few districts of the Kashmir Valley region. The non Muslim regions will not accept independence or a merger with Pakistan, already in a mess of its own. Kashmir is a cancerous tumor for India, it needs to be given urgent chemotherapy. The LoC needs to be acknowledged as an international border as soon as possible. The latest intefada in Kashmir is a sign of discontent and a call for change in the status quo. The Booker Prize winning author Arundhati Roy is being tried in Indian Courts for sedition for calling for Kashmiri Independence. In my view, Economic pragmatism should hold precedence over futile nationalistic sentiment. India as an emerging power should not be felt tied down by a historical cartographic error of judgement. Its as complex an issue as Palestine, but the right first state should be the granting of autonomy to Kashmir under the Indian Constitution for the cooling to take place in a heated scene.

Capitalism reflects positives in the human psyche- power, growth, efficiency and the competitive drive and hence it has built the industrial and the post industrial society since the 1750’s. Socialism and Communism had an opportunity to play its cards with the Soviet experiment for 70 years; proved to be a success in its patches and crumbled under its weight of militarization and authoritarianism. It was dictatorship of the proletarian structure in the USSR and Eastern Europe than anything. Capitalism drives greed and has lead to financial meltdowns during the great depression, the Asian Financial Crisis and the Sub prime debacle over the last two years, Rubini- The doom guru saw it coming but no one else sadly. Capitalism has lead to enormous transformation in lifestyles but also has increased the gradient between the have and the have nots.

Social Innovators such as Ashoka and the Microfinance pioneer Grameen have done good work, but with recent failures  in India with SKS under the scanner and the Bangladeshi Government ousting Dr. Yunus from its CEOship.. This movement is also under the scanner. There are tiny success stories of social innovators all over the globe, creating an impact one community at a time. The Asia Impact Investment Exchange pioneered by Durren Shahnaz- a Bangladeshi social innovator creating a platform for social businesses to raise funds.

The fundamental question is not addressed- there is a gulf between conventional profit based businesses and the non profit organizations who try to do good under fiscally constrained circumstances.  Why is there a 12 inch gap in thinking between the heart and the head?

The hallmark of a successful society is help those who cannot help themselves. We are living in carbon constrained times as well. We are brewing a perfect storm, its the calm lull prior to the calamity.  We need to be a more human society, get our values back in place. We need incentives for creating happier families, a healthy climate and grow sustainable.

We need to re-boot our system or the CPU is going to crash very soon.. the earth’s processor is over stretched and the human intellect is rising but not the soul, its shrinking…We need more RAM into our real motherboard- The spirit and the soul… for the entire technical framework to have upgrades

This Post is an organic continuation of the last post of mine on the Black Swan and 127 Hours (Three Films, Three Oscar winning films!)

The Kings Speech is an incredible film; truly worthy of an Oscar which the film has received for the Best Actor for Colin Firth. Firth has acted like a vulnerable underdog sort of a person; stricken with the disease associated with the people who are second in line to the throne…near but yet far, the Prince Harry Syndrome- accountability without real influence and power.

The Films backdrop is set in 1925  and continues till the advent of the second World War’s commencement in 1939. Colin Firth is a stammerer who has faced many an insult and humiliation since the age of four when He was mistreated by the Nanny and hence developed an inferiority complex, He was forced to write with his right hand being a natural left hander, inculcating something un-natural has its own psychological cost as well.  He is helped reluctantly by a self trained Aussie Speech Therapist named Lionel Logue in the film and Firth being Bertie aka King George The VI. The film depicts the journey of a person low on self esteem thursted on the Throne when his elder brother abdicates it, in order to marry his colourful mistress Wallace from Baltimore. Lionel is there by Bertie’s side when he gives his coronation speech and when presenting the War commencement address to the nation, at the end of the movie. The commoner Lionel teaches the King a few truths which a psychologically weak individual has to confront if He has to meet the challenge. He insists the King calls him Lionel and He calls him by his nickname Bertie to create a comfort level and a level playing field! Lionel becomes a good confidant of the King and the King decorates him with trust and recognition.

The film demonstrates that for a leader his oratory skills are critical to his survival if not success. It presents a demeanor of ability and confidence to carry out his tasks as one the principal skill sets requirement is to effectively communicate to his people or stakeholders.  That is the reason Barack Obama is a  global leader or closer to home Atal Bihari Vajpayee is a respected statesman. Barack Obama’s Cairo, Jakarta and Berlin address’s are what will be remembered; his ability to inspire is historic. His Nobel Peace Prize address was stuff which great speeches are made of as well.

In this Web 2.0 age of the media, effective communication can make or break a leader of which a precursor was shown in the film as well- with the advent of the radio, the ability to communicate and inspire became the most valuable skill which a leader could possess. As an individual who used to stammer until my late teens, I would vouch the communication with charm and ease is a blessing indeed!

 

I am not usually a person to watch two films a month and I only watch films in the theatre (As a writer the minimum I can do is to respect intellectual property)… So I watched Natalie Portman’s Black Swan and the 127 Hours directed by Danny Boyle, a favorite in India after Slumdog Millionare and its Oscar Success (Technically its a British Film!)… Both the films are Oscar Success’s this year and I have to still watch the film- The Kings Speech, which is a major winner at the Oscars this time around. I watched these films in the amazing company of friends as well:) Thank you to Shriyanka and Bharat!

Enough of a background introduction as of now… The Black Swan is a technically stunning film based on a second generation ballerina’s career, who is making the transition from being a background artiste to playing a lead- being the main attraction and a show stopper of the production. The director of the production is all powerful, calling the shots and dumping the old star performer for the new performer (The protagonist- Natalie Portman is enacting in the film) and officially driving her into retirement. The Casting Couch Syndrome, sexual exploitation of the entertainment industry, which is the worst kept secret around is categorically characterized with other performers thinking the protagonist has slept her way to the top ( which is not true, although the director did make suggestions in that direction). There is a coup attempt by another performer, taking the protagonist for a wild party evening prior to the debut performance night- an attempt to sabotage her career.  The critical takeaway from this is that lust and temptation can ruin years of hardwork and even more determination and concentration is needed prior to the main performance evening rather than be in a state of awe and jubilation.  The Film is technically brilliant, cinematography and background score is haunting and brilliant. Natalie Portman has given a performance of lifetime. She portrays the transition from an angel to a lustful devil in her pursuit of stardom and success. The moral of the story: People have to adapt to the circumstance in order to make the paradigm shift to success. The shift was in a morally subversive direction, conveying that the world is nasty and success is a temporary phase and fleeting to the core. Always have a Plan B when, your days of Stardom are numbered.

The other film which I watched last weekend was the Danny Boyle film 127 Hours- Its a single man’s story.. He is a adventure freak ,a rebel and he does things his own way. As usual he is young guy..full of adrenalin! The character of the protagonist goes out to explore the canyon’s.. meets two young women, lost in the road..takes them on a journey through the canyon’s unexplored places… goes for diving and swimming in the underground natural pool and promises the women that he would drop in for a beer, at the party which the girls were throwing with an inflated scooby doo!

Then the story unfolds (its very boring for first part of the film), He gets stuck in a part of the canyon with his one arm crushed and stuck under the rock. He has food and water to last him for 3 to 4 days, has a video camera, a knife and all other mountaineering apparatus with him. He is trying to get his arm out of the rock, He is stuck in the horrendous place for 127 hours and that the film.  He loses out on water, food and energy after 3 days… drinks his pee, no number 2- constantly films his story and gets sunlight in the hole for 15 minutes a day! incredible!!

He still masturbates in that desperate condition (Men will be Men even if it is hell) and he remembers that he did not pick up his Mum’s call when he was leaving for this ill fated adventure trip, hence he did not inform her and lost his chances on a rescue (He happens to be a rescuer himself). He fought with his girlfriend before coming too, his case was destines to be lost! Then he cut his arm, which was stuck under the rock with a knife (was very bloody and gore) to free himself of the hell he is in. He finally bails himself out of the hole and gets rescued by a family and the authorities. The last 20 minutes of the film are beautiful, as this film is a book adaptation from a real story, the person who actually did it was shown in pictures in a collage. The background score by Madras Maestro Rahman is stunning, bring to life many a dull scene…

The Takeaway from the film- Value your family, and always let your parents know..where are you heading and this film exemplified the human will to survive, the creativity, ingenuity and the desperation to live and to live life to the full after such an event. Both the films were inspirational to me..

 

 

I am quite an avid follower of international current affairs events since I am young, it always bewilders me that mono linguistic and societies with homogeneous socio ethnic structures always do better (with the prominent examples being Germany, Sweden,  Japan and Korea)  , there is another element which differentiates them from the rot of the third world – an emphasis of public values; they lay a premium on how their leaders behave in public and they uphold the sanctum sanctorum of values of good governance. Whether these emanate from Confucian or Protestant values, these nations hold national pride in delivering the goods and upholding respect.

Although there are examples of chronic failure in standards in governance as well such as Greece and Italy (The Prime Minister having a very colorful existence ) in Europe, but they have the EU Safety Shield to protect them.  India, being my country of birth and citizenship; has a total vacuum in value driven governance. With a plethora of scams and goof ups in major events which uphold national honor such as the commonwealth games, the need of the hour in India is someone who restores Indian Pride internationally and inspires us to take up the mantle for growth and development. Nationalism is only demonstrated in India in the event of a cricket match or of a territorial conflict. With the emergence of competent leadership in the opposition camp such as Nitish Kumar, Shivraj Chauhan and above all Narendra Bhai Modi; there is hope. Dynamic leaders in the ruling establishment such as Rahulji Gandhi, Sachin Pilot and Omar Abdullah have brought some efficiency in the system. But these examples are few and far in between. A Kapil Sibal and a Jairam Ramesh can only do so much. Corruption and nepotism is endemic, these are tumors in our system.  The room for values based decision making is squeezed out.

The moment, values are brought back on the seat of power; governance will be restored to its rightful place….