Economy after the pandemic The impact of the pandemic on political systems
The covid-19 pandemic will cause a major change in the political systems in many countries. 

To address the economic disruption, many countries have to implement fiscal stimulus plan that cause a large increase in debt. It required the government to play a large role in the economy.

The neo-liberal system that has been in favor for the past three decades, and which advocated a smaller role for the government, failed to produce a suitable response. The government had to step in.

Most countries will now move to a new environment where the government, or the state, has to pay a leading role. It is not possible to leave important matters to be left to the working of the market or to businesses to find the right solutions.

I also envisage that democratic systems will change. The need for a bigger and stronger government will require the political system to be changed to produce the right type of government. Countries cannot afford to have unstable governments that can be changed regularly to suit the wishes of the people. 

We are likely to move to a more authoritarian form of government, whether military, communist, fascist or monarchy.

If democracy is to survive, it need to change its structure to create a government that is more stable, and less likely to change in a general election.

A democratic government should have, at its core, a group of leaders that can serve a longer term and be assured of continuity. It can be backed by elected leaders that can reflect the wishes of the people, but do not become the majority in one election. 

How about a system where the leaders are elected based on their personal qualities and not on party affiliation? 

How about electing people in a multi-level system with each level electing leaders at the next higher level, so that the top leaders are those that came through the ranks?

This system ensures that the top leaders have to come through the ranks and are elected by people who knows them well and are able to trust them in leadership.

Is there a country that already adopt this system? It is also the system adopted by the catholic church. It has produced stable leadership that has proved to be able to deliver good results over the centuries. It may not be totally free of corruption, but is probably better than most other systems.

By the way, it is also the way that the communist party system works.

Tan Kin Lian


 

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