Handout (Party Politics, Paper
II – Elections)
Pre-election checklist
When your party is in power:
- Practice taking long walks in the sun. Elections are always in summer
and you will have to walk a lot during the campaigning.
- Buy many handkerchiefs. Using umbrellas during a procession or a rally
is often frowned upon and it also hinders the views of those behind it. Hence
wrapping a handkerchief around your head is more advisable.
- Practice sitting in the sun with an engrossed facial expression for at
least a couple of hours in order to survive the major political rallies.
- Develop some basic idea of the party’s ideology, if any. This will be
a good time to find out if your party is left, right or centre.
- Read the newspaper every day to update yourself about your real enemy.
While running up to the election your party will continuously make and break
alliances and it is important that you know who is an enemy and who is a friend
for a particular day or week.
When your party is not in power:
- Practice running. You will have to run for your life often during your
attempts at campaigning.
- Practice smelling rotten garbage. Walls behind garbage dumps and vats
are usually the places allocated for opposition party’s political graffiti. You
will frequently need to stand there and draw them.
- Practice being polite. You are not in power.
- Learn the ruling party’s slogans and ideology. If surrounded, you
might have to act as a ruling party agent to save your skin.
- Always carry political pamphlets. You may never be allowed to campaign
openly and these may come as handy to shove into people’s hands.
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