The political landscape is surprising. The government's disarray has revitalized an opposition that was previously weakened. Potential differences fade away in the face of a shared effort to undermine the government. They concluded that it was pointless to discuss their own shortcomings, given the government's 15-year failure to address the most pressing demands of the people: prosperity and security. Hope has been rekindled that they might return to power in 4 years, and rather than acknowledging their own mistakes, their focus is on rejecting everything the government does, unleashing "legislative tidal waves," creating chaos, making life difficult for the government, all without a clear vision beyond simply occupying bureaucratic positions. This is their ingrained mentality, not that of leaders like in the time of Lagos.
However, the government itself is also surprising. One might have expected a more organized start. They claimed to have a clear plan, even prioritizing an "emergency plan" with dozens of measures. But, rather than a clear plan, it seems that each minister, each official in the "second floor" of the government building, each political party in the government, each parliamentarian, has their own agenda. More than a lack of a unified narrative, there are many conflicting narratives being publicly presented. Perhaps things are clear behind the palace walls, but they have neglected the art of politics: persuading "the people." When this happens, people are unsure of what to expect, there is a lack of purpose in what is being done, and the authority of the government and the president is undermined.
Both sides suffer from a different kind of blindness, but the underlying problem is shared. They ignore...
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PHOTO: DEDVI MISSENE Dedvi Missene Comments: The political scene is surprising. Governmental disarray has revitalized an opposition that was previously in decline. Potential differences fade away in the face of a convergence in boycotting the government. They concluded that it was a waste of time to discuss their own mistakes, given a 15-year track record of failing to address the most pressing demands of the people: prosperity and security. Hope has been rekindled that they might return to La Moneda in 4 years, and rather than acknowledging their own errors, it is their duty to reject everything about the government, unleash "tsunamis" of legislation, disrupt everything, and make their lives impossible, with no other goal than to once again occupy bureaucratic positions. This is their spirit, that of residents, not of rulers, as in the time of Lagos. But the government is also surprising. One would expect an orderly start. They claimed to have a clear plan, even prioritizing an "emergency plan" with dozens of measures. However, instead of a clear plan, it seems that each minister, each occupant of the "second floor," each governing party, each parliamentarian, has their own. More than a lack of a unifying narrative, many narratives are publicly conflicting. Perhaps things are clear behind the palace walls, but they have omitted politics: the art of convincing "the people." When this happens, people don't know what to expect, there is a lack of a sense of purpose in what is being done, and the authority of the government and the president is undermined. Both suffer from a different kind of blindness, but the epidemic is shared. They ignore the fact that they are no longer the only alternatives for a society tired of its politicians. The pendulum of alternating power, a fifteen-year cycle, is caught between two forms of authoritarianism. One is the exclusionary left, supported by another faction of the left, which deems the government of anyone other than itself to be illegitimate, but does not offer any real change; and the other is the exclusionary right, which believes it possesses the truth and seeks to impose it, without seeking to convince or agree with others, not even with its own citizens (or the CFA). In the first round, neither candidate reached a third of the votes, meaning that each had more than two-thirds of voters who did not vote for them. And in the second round, the majority vote for each candidate came from those who did not vote for them in the first round. Their supposed majorities are fragile and unstable. It is therefore not surprising that the pendulum threatens to change direction. If the left refuses to re-evaluate itself after such monumental failures, obsessed only with returning to occupy the state apparatus; and if the right does not understand that it requires more than two or three uncertain votes for citizens and investors to embrace its dreams of success, then we should not be surprised if, in the face of endless governmental sterility, an "anti-elite" candidacy emerges on the horizon of Chile, ready to fill the organic void of that oscillating "center" that creates majorities. Have you seen how Parisi and his PDG are taking advantage of this time when the future is being shaped? By Óscar Guillermo Garretón, economist. More on: opposition, government, reconstruction, growth, agreements. NEWSLETTER: Opinion, Saturday: Ideas in tension, contrasting views, and a clear analysis: elements to reveal the issues that divide opinions and will shape the agenda. By subscribing, you are accepting the Terms and Conditions and the Privacy Policies of La Tercera.