Session 12: Parties and Party Systems

The presence of political parties can be found in most countries – their main aim is to win government power through elections or any other means. Political parties have many other functions though, such as representing their members and forming goals which are acceptable by all.

 There are many benefits of having various political parties – people with the same mindset can get together in the same party and move towards the goals they want to achieve. Also, some form of light debate is always healthy – if parties, remaining within their limits, oppose one another it may lead to a greater amount of ingenuity.

However, people often experience escalation of commitment. Such people fail to see the flaws in their own party and criticize other parties without giving their judgment proper thought. Moreover, as we see quite often in Pakistan, parties soon forget why they were formed in the first place and focus on achieving benefits for themselves rather than the public that supports them. Before the election period, campaigns promise basic necessities to everyone; after parties have won the seats they forget their promises. Also, parties go to great lengths to win – even if those great lengths involve corruption. In Pakistan, for instance, PTI claimed there had been rigging.

In conclusion, the presence of parties is a healthy concept but we need to address the problems within the parties in order to improve the entire system.