Question

“Political parties are one of the most visible institutions in a democracy.” Examine the statement.

Hint:

Build the answer on the functions of parties, contesting elections, forming government and opposition, making laws, shaping opinion and giving access to welfare schemes. Add that people blame parties for whatever goes wrong, which itself shows their visibility.

Answer 1

Concept:

• For most ordinary people, democracy is equal to political parties. Parties are the part of the democratic system that people actually see and deal with.
• Their visibility comes from the number of functions they perform and from how far those functions reach into daily life.

Step 1: They are the face of every election.
Elections are fought mainly among candidates put up by political parties. Voters see party symbols, manifestos, rallies and campaigns, and a candidate without a party is the exception rather than the rule.

Step 2: They form the government that people live under.
The party or alliance winning a majority forms the government, chooses the leaders, appoints the ministers and takes the decisions. Parties that lose take up the role of the opposition and criticise the government for its wrong policies.
Whichever side people look at, they see a party.

Step 3: They decide the laws that bind everyone.
Laws are debated and passed in the legislature, but members generally vote as their party directs. In practice, therefore, it is the party rather than the individual member that shapes a law.

Step 4: They shape what the country talks about.
Parties raise and highlight issues, launch movements and mould public opinion, often working alongside pressure groups. An issue that no party takes up rarely reaches the national agenda at all.

Step 5: They are the point of contact for the ordinary citizen.
For an ordinary person a local party worker is far easier to approach than a government officer. Parties therefore provide access to government machinery and to welfare schemes, which is why people know their party workers by name.
This is also why people blame parties for whatever is wrong with the working of a democracy, another sign of how visible they are.

Final Answer: Parties are the most visible institution because they contest every election, form the government and the opposition, decide the laws, set the public agenda, and serve as the everyday link between the citizen and the state. To most people, they simply are the democracy.