JT 5KOCHI: In an apparent dig at the UDF Government, DGP Jacob Thomas on Thursday asked  whether there was a government in Kerala. Delivering the 11th quarterly lecture on ‘Governance and Accountability’ organised by the Centre for Public Policy Research (CPPR) here, Jacob Thomas said administrators were not accountable to their office and society, which was the root cause of all problems.

The budget should be transparent so that allegations that budget details were sold can be averted. Referring to the levels of accountability, he said Lokayukta was neither accountable to the people nor the legislature.

“If there is no good leadership, any state will be in trouble. Five persons were appointed heads of Fire Force in a period of  one year. “Political nominees are appointed in every government department. If you do not salute superior officers twice a day, you will not get salary. In a survey conducted  by a media house recently, it was found that politicians were major problems in the country. Is our government destroying the society or nurturing it?  Politicians aim at power, not development of the country and welfare of the people, the DGP said.

He said the government was still lost in the past glory of achievements attained during 1960 to 70 while the issues in agriculture sector, of people living in the coastal belt, Adivasis are yet to be addressed. We have to introspect where we stand in waste treatment, pure drinking water, immunisation programme and cancer treatment. “There has not been any development with regard to the proposed Kochi Cancer Centre for the last 18 months. Our research institutions were not able to secure one patent during last five years.” he said

He displayed a video on Murukanandan  of Coimbatore, who set up a low-cost sanitary napkin manufacturing unit. Referring to his initiative, a villager from Coimbatore, he said Kerala needed more entrepreneurs like him. “We require less public servants, less policies and more entrepreneurs,” he said.“One should have the courage to fight  corruption, though there are chances of harassment and vindication. In case of accidents, compensation is not the solution. Rather, preventive mechanisms can ensure accountability,” he said.

 

 

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