In many countries across parts of Africa, Asia, and South America, a visible wideee divide exists between the governing class and ordinary citizens. Public schools are underfunded and poorly equipped, while politicians send their children abroad or to elite private institutions. Public hospitals struggle with inadequate infrastructure and staff shortages, coupled with poor pay for the staff, while leaders seek treatment overseas. Roads deteriorate, public transport is unreliable, yet convoys of luxury vehicles move swiftly through cleared traffic. The people experience the consequences of inept leadership while the leaders do not.
The so called leaders as a result are shielded from the failures of the public systems, there is little urgency to reform them. Poor infrastructure becomes a political talking point, dnt even get me started on budget allocations. But then my point being if a senator’s child had to sit in an overcrowded classroom with broken desks, education reform would become immediate. If a minister had to wait in a public hospital corridor during a medical emergency, healthcare funding would no longer be delayed. If governors had to rely on public transport and use the same deteriorated road, without sirens and escorts, road networks and safety standards would improve rapidly. Its not rocket science, these are facts to me.
And yes i know some critics might argue that security concerns make such a redesign unrealistic, particularly in fragile states. That concern is valid, but security provisions can exist without creating a completely separate universe of comfort and privilege. How can a Governor be using over 10 to 15 cars as escort because he doesnt feel safe and leave his citizens with little to no protection. Where will the urgency to safeguard peoples lives come from?
In many third-world countries to be honest, politics is often treated as an escape route from the very systems leaders once criticized. It is a do or die affair. Public office becomes a pathway to comfort. Requiring politicians and their families to rely on public institutions would reverse that logic. If developing countries could get their leaders right and their politics right, the whole world will be a better place, even the big debate on immigration will be non-existent.