When they stepped onto the field the first thing that struck me (and about 99% of the populace) was the sight of their gravity defying bellies which no doubt was brought on by countless years of inactivity. I don't suppose they get much exercise apart from occasionally smashing chairs and relentlessly lifting and dropping voter optimism. The entire spectacle itself emulated real life in so many hilarious ways that you could be forgiven for missing many of the obvious associations. The countless substitutions made by our politicians absolutely necessary (trust me) perfectly encapsulated the farcical political situation of musical chairs that we've seen over the last few years. Another thing I was drawn to was their mix and match jersey and shorts which were strangely symbolic of the improvised nature of their politics. The fact that they were beaten 3-0 should not come as a surprise to us. After all, they usually like to be on the receiving rather than the giving end of things as we saw with the tents and other essentials. We shouldn't really expect it to be any different in a football match.
Anyway, I wanted to switch off after the match but old habits die hard and I found myself flicking through the channels. Now, the news channel epidemic in our country means that after any event- irrespective of its size or significance- there is news that has to be manufactured and 'discussions' contrived in order to gain the viewer's attention. It was during one of those (often pointless) discussions that the host tells his guest that consensus on the constitution is not far off, judging from what he has seen today. He uses the football game analogy to show that our politicians can actually put aside their differences and get along together and that this will somehow be magically translated into the constitution drafting process. Now, either I'm extraordinarily cynical by nature or that was one of the most wildly optimistic assertions ever. Surely I'm not alone in refusing to believe that our politicians were about to turn over a new leaf on the basis of this match day bonhomie. We don't need reminding that our politics is anything but 'friendly' like this game was. Our learned guest was also very optimistic and said something along the lines of political consensus and football both requiring 'teamwork' which made them similar in a lot of ways. Our politicians may be just as outwardly determined to draft the constitution as they were to win this football match but most of them do lack the political will to see it through just as their bodies left them unable to see the match through. A football game is simple in that a team has only one aim- to score a goal (which they didn't manage). In real life they often have vested interests that hamper 'teamwork'. It is the footballing equivalent of tripping up your team mate when he is bearing down on goal. The guest (on the show) thought he was certainly within his rights to be optimistic. Fair enough, but it did make me wonder if he was also out of his mind. Unlike football there are millions of permutations and combinations to consider in real life. In football you have to play according to the referee's rules which are set in stone but in our political reality the rules are frequently dictated by another referee – our big brother to the south. Lastly no matter what anyone says football is just a game. The obvious nature of our constitution drafting task is that there are identities, cultures, livelihoods and the future of our nation at stake.
Even as I write this our politicians have made a remarkable break through by agreeing on an eight province model of federalism. I'm not averse to giving credit where it's due and they deserve praise for this! Bravo! The prophecy of our show's guest and his host may yet come true and I would dearly love to be proved wrong. Although it is a step in the right direction we have, in the words of Robert Frost 'miles to go'. I'm not holding my breath just as yet because the years of political ineptitude that reinforced my pessimistic leanings haven't evaporated in a wave of sunshine and optimism just yet. On that note, I wouldn't auction off those football jerseys just yet. They might actually need it when they play for us next - the potential victims of the constitution drafting process.
gunjan.u@gmail.com
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