DIRDEM    

 July 2021

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Campaign for the Introduction of Direct Democracy

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Government

 

We propose the introduction of direct election of Senior Government Officials

In order to reduce reliance on the whims of certain individuals the number of these positions should be held to an absolute minimum. We do not think that a political entity should be dominated by one individual, be it's name Mitterand, Thatcher, Kohl, Chirac or Berlusconi. Whatever their personal and political merit may be (or have been) it is easy to find as many mistakes as successes. As in the case of the Roman Republic or Switzerland in more recent times an exception will be made in case of war.
 

One person should not run a country

Nor should he or she be expected to do so. Too much is expected from any incoming leader of a new government. All major political decisions should be taken after careful deliberation and decided by mandatory referendum. The well-being of a country would not depend on the decisions taken by a single person. Politicians should not be allowed too much freedom. They are not elected to 'impose' their vision on their subjects like some monarch or dictator but are elected to look after the administration of the laws and regulations set by the legislative assemblies and ultimately sanctioned by the consent of the people (who will always have the last say due to the right of to start a referendum).
Separation of powers means that the legislature is solely in charge of introducing laws and the government is primarily focused on keeping house and making sure that the machinery of government functions smoothly on a day-by-day basis. The unhealthy practice that of so-called parliamentary democracies, where legislative and executive power are linked together, makes it all too easy for parties and governments to combine against the interests of the citizens.
Direct democracy would involve citizens directly in the introduction of laws and severely hamper the ambitions of individual politicians. Some try to explain the dominance of families in the political process of various countries (Kennedy, Bush, Clinton in the USA, Ghandi in India etc) with the fact that the average voter does not have the ability to judge persons on the basis of objective facts alone.
We think that this is more likely to be the consequence of an electoral process that puts to much emphasis on the selection of one leading politician and therefore puts the discussion specific policies into the background when election day comes. Votes are swayed by promises that often are broken anyway when the election has been decided.

 

Collective government tampers ego trips by politicians

A collective form of government would go a long way to prevent politician's egos to get out of control. The example of Switzerland shows that any country can happily exist without a 'Supreme Leader' - be it a Prime Minister, a Chancellor or a President. The senior Ministers just take it in turns and one of them is nominated Speaker for a year. Readers should be reminded that 'Leader' has some sinister connotations in any case as the word can be translated as 'Fuehrer' and 'Duce'. Need we say more?


Does Europe need a President?

The Catholics have a Pope, Monarchies had (and have) Kings, the Americans have a President. So naturally Europe needs a President? We do not think so. The personalisation of politics in an agglomeration of states as different as the members of the European Union is unnecessary. Much better to have a college of ministers which designates a speaker on a rotating basis each year. And if there has to be a President there has to be a clear separation of powers and a term limit of one year. As we also demand the introduction of binding and facultative measures of direct democracy and strict separation of responsibilities between the member states and the EU there would be severe limits on the powers of the Presidency.
 


 

Why you should support
Dirdem:

Are you angry when people want to control your life?

Are you angry when people want to live off the fruit of your work?

Are you angry when people want to tell you what to think?

►If your answer is YES
to any or all of the above questions then you should support our Movement.



DIRDEM
is more than a traditional Political Party. We do not see this Cause as a career choice - or stepping stone leading to a lucrative career in the private sector.

DIRDEM
is not a Think Tank that publishes lengthy reports that are only read by a few insiders and later disappear in some library of filing cabinet.

DIRDEM
is not a Lobby or Special Interest Group that tries to gain advantage at the expense of other groups of society.

DIRDEM
is not a Religion or Ideology and does not try to make people believe in something except in the belief that no one should be allowed to rule our lives.
 

Decisions you would be able to influence:

By giving the reader examples of recent policy decisions we highlight the dramatic impact the introduction of Direct Democracy would have on the political life of all countries.

All the following decisions where taken without the participation of the affected citizens. Some - if not most - were highly controversial and have a negative effect for at least some major parts of the country's population.

The present system of government not only leaves the citizens powerless in the face of a never-ending tide of legislation, it also inevitably leads to inefficient use of taxpayer's money and a steady erosion of civil liberties.

See what decisions the citizens could influence directly in a proper democratic system

 

 

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