The call to change – three concrete ways

I could think of three concrete ways of being a change in the context of today’s pandemic: Be a Good Samaritan, be a watch dog and finally be whistle blower.

Being a Good Samaritan

We know this pandemic has brought out the best and the worst in human beings. The amount of help and advocacy for the affected both in the country and across the world is astounding. It is as though the evil of coronavirus pandemic has brought the best of humans. Look around and we see millions of good images. In India, thousands of volunteers across the country provided food and water to the needy. So many are actively advocating for the cause of the helpless. And influential figures from the film industry like Hrithik Roshan and others are reported to have helped 40,000 migrant workers.

Having said that, we should remember the difference between a random act of charity and being a Good Samaritan. In the Bible, there is a parable of Good Samaritan, who did not just do some charity and walk away. He ensured that the victim was back on his feet.

Here is the challenge: Can we move on from random, quick act of charity to sustained accompaniment of the helpless and needy? Or as another actor rightly said, ´Donate, but don’t take a camera along´. Can we, along with all people of good will, ensure that we will accompany the helpless till they are self-reliant and back on their feet? That is the CHANGE we need today and need it bad!

Be a Watchdog

´A watchdog is a person/organization responsible for ensuring agencies obey particular standards and do not act illegally.´
To be a change in India or elsewhere is to be a watchdog today. Someone who can explain the truth in simple and understandable terms. Let me give you a concrete example. When the Government of India announced a huge amount of Rupees 20 lakh crore as stimulus package there were two distinctively opposite narratives. The official one claimed that it is one among the largest in the world. The opposition said, it is an eye wash. There is hardly anything in it for the poor and marginalized. Now, here is where we need a watchdog, who is unbiased, or rather, biased on the side of the poor and marginalized, telling the ordinary people what the truth is. They can continuously alert people on needs to be done for those who actually require our help. To be a CHANGE today is to be a watchdog!

Be a Whistle Blower

´A whistle blower is a person who blows the lid off an organization or person engaging in an unlawful or immoral activity like corruption, fraud etc. ´
Unfortunately, we live in a context where whistle blowers are exterminated, in spite of legal machineries like Whistle Blowers Protection Act, 2011. Consequently if we just look at the number of whistleblowers who have just disappeared we would be in for a shock. Would anyone remember Satyendra Dubey, the Indian Engineering Service officer who was murdered? All that we know is that he called out the corruption in construction projects. There are hundreds of others in the line, known and unknown. There are those who are in prison on false allegations and are forced to silence them. Fear rules the world today. Words like ´sedition´ and ´anti-national´ are used loosely. We need whistle blowers and brave ones. To be a CHANGE today, is to be a whistle blower.

Credible Change?

One of the biggest crises of leadership across the world is the loss of credibility. They don´t practice what they preach. The Post-Truth Society makes the crisis subtler. Social media and the virtual buying of conventional media by corporates and the ruling class have made issues of credibility really complex. We do not know what to believe. The fact is that everyone still longs for credible leaders but no one has the courage to stand up against them.

I would like to criticize the leader of my nation for calling for self-reliance of the people, himself wearing clothes costing lakhs of rupees and branded glasses and watches until I look around and see where I am – in the cozy comfort zone of my upper middle class home.

The society calls for credible change, for its survival and true existence. Can we make that difference for humanity? Can we get out of the comforts of our homes? Can we be a credible CHANGE during these unprecedented times of a pandemic?