Businessmen should mind their own business and not the business of the country

In December 2005, the Garden City toastmasters club conducted a debate competition. The opinion of the house was "Businessmen should mind their own business and not the business of the country". This was in response to the entry of Ambanis and other business men into politics.

I had to argue for the topic because Kanikraj has chosen to argue against it. The 2 of us represented our club and won the first place. Read on.................

The other day I was reading the entertainment section in the Times of India. There was a piece of writing about Oxymorons. An oxymoron in English is a word or a phrase which is a combination of two words which contradict one another. Some examples are Rap Music because rap is not musical at all. Junk Food, because if it is food it cannot be called junk, if it is junk, it cannot be called food. American culture because America does not have a distinct culture of it’s own. Government organization is an oxymoron because the government is so disorganized. The list goes on…. Deafening silence, mournful optimist, dangerous innocence, which is often used to describe an ocean. One particular oxymoron which I clearly remember was business ethics, which means Business people supposedly do not have ethics. For all the business men seated here who are giving me angry looks, let me tell you the article was meant to be a humorous one. Nevertheless, I seriously believe that business people should keep out of politics.

The government can be thought of as a non profit organization. It is therefore necessary that we have as a ruler of the nation, a person who can think beyond profit and loss. Ours being a mixed economy which is a combination of socialistic and capitalistic economy, it is extremely important that we prevent accumulation of wealth in the hands of a few, and ensure uniform distribution of wealth.

If a business person enters politics, it is most likely that he will use his power to manipulate law so as to benefit his business. For example the famous Dhirubai Ambani used his political connections to manipulate the income tax policy in such a way that minimum tax was levied on goods which his business produced. He did all this just by being a businessman. If he had been a politician too with all the power in his hands, you can imagine the extent to which he would manipulate law and the system in general.
In December 2005, the Garden City toastmasters club conducted a debate. The opinion of the house was "Businessmen should mind their own business and not the business of the country". This was mainly in response to the entry of Ambanis and other business people into politics.

I had to argue for the topic merely because someone had already chosen to argue aginst it. The two of us represented our club and won the first place. Read on....................................

The government gets it’s money from the taxes that you and I pay. At this point how can we be ignorant of the fact that most of the tax evasions that happen are because of businessmen? Can one such businessman who is reluctant to pay his taxes, set a good example for the rest of the citizens? No.

For all my opponents who claim that a business man is a superior candidate for politics because of a business degree from Harvard University, let me tell you about a princess who went on to become a queen. When her minister told her that people in her kingdom did not have bread to eat, she asked very innocently, if they don’t have bread, why don’t they eat cakes? Most of the businessmen I see in politics today are people who were born with silver spoons in their mouths. We need someone who will be able to relate to the common problems of people like sanitation, drinking water, education, electricity and other basic amenities. Not someone who would be required to step into their shoes, but someone who has already been in their shoes.