Trust will be won by giving it

 

 

This week I wanted to write about that repetitive chatter about citizens' lack of trust in the government that is such a hot topic in the media every time. I don't have anything to say about the countries I visit at the moment and this is something I've wanted to talk about for some time. But that will come in a moment.

First, I would like to tell you about the Acato student who was in jail (see posts of 2 June and 18 August).

You see, my beautiful boy is free again from jail and back on the streets. Does he feel free? I don't think so. The judge released him because he doesn't belong in jail. That feels a bit like justice. There are, however, a mountain of fines that he may pay through an installment scheme with the money he does not have. Maybe he can go to an agency to get help with that but he may not know which agency that would be....  Some orders or recommendations or I don't know what were made by the court and then it was bye, bye. Of course the court is not going to check with the municipality if the recommendations were followed up. That is the responsibility of the free man himself, to make sure he gets what he is entitled to. The responsibility of the boy who has nowhere to go, no home, no money, no help.

The municipality of Rotterdam gave him a week in the emergency shelter. And with that, in the opinion of the municipality, they have done their job. Than the boy was sent out into the streets again, with the message that everyone is trying very hard to arrange something for him. But he is not a priority for the municipality, his mother told me on the phone this morning. No, I know. For the municipality can sit back and relax because the municipality is sure it will not be blamed for anything. A homeless, (ex?) drug addict with a criminal record. Haha, who is going to blame us for what? That the municipality has created this homeless, (ex?) drug addict with a criminal record itself nobody knows anymore. No one bothers to remind the municipality of that. And when someone does remind the municipality, they simply say: 'We can't do anything about it. We have offered this young man so much, but he makes a mess of everything. He doesn't want to be helped. So unfortunately, we can't help him.'

The municipality will not be blamed for anything and so there will be no help, the boy will not get what he is entitled to by law. Who is going to fight that right for him? He has to do that himself. But he dares not because: 'Then they won't do anything for me at all.' And does he know where to start? Ah of course not. The municipality can sit back and relax. Sleep tight. It is a slow murder the municipality is committing, but no one will ever be able to prove it when the time comes. Sleep easy municipality. Wash your hands once in a while... it makes you feel better.

Trust will be won by giving it

'The Speech from the Throne' spoke of it again: Citizens do not trust the government. That trust must be regained. Where does this distrust come from? From the tax-benefits affair? The Groningen gas woes? The farmers' crisis? This boy being let down?

No I don't think so, not only that. I think, the distrust in government comes from the distrust the government has had in citizens for decades. For decades, the government has done nothing but step up control on citizens because the citizen can apparently not be trusted in all his doings. Not in his work, not when he needs care, not when he is unemployed. That distrust is now being thrown in the government's face.

The government has no confidence in training, no confidence in professionalism, and so people have to keep checklists as they work. Safe management systems is the fancy name for those, but it's just mistrust. No trust in healthcare because the government itself has turned it into an industry that is supposed to turn a profit. Healthcare institutions are trying to rake in as much money as possible and that makes them suspicious at the same time. Control! People who need care are under strict control as they cause the rising cost of control. People are encouraged to spend money because the economy has to grow, but making money makes people, yes, suspicious. Then you definitely want more huh? Yes yes yes we know how that goes. The citizen entitled to tax-benefits is very suspicious. The citizen receiving benefits is the most suspicious of all.

By definition, citizens are suspect until proven innocent. Citizens have been weighed down by this for a very long time. It gets under the skin. For a long time, we citizens thought it was la good thing. We are subservient to the law, after all. And we all want a safe, fair society. But citizens are not given credit for that attitude. On the contrary. The citizen becomes more suspicious by the day, because the citizen has had enough and makes that very clear. The citizen yearns for peace, for a bit of air and freedom.

It is now also clear that the increasingly stringent rules imposed by the government on citizens are not being followed by the government itself. Criticism of policies has no consequences. Failure has no consequences. Ombudsman reports simply disappear into the bin. Citizens who dare to complain can count on even more measures.

If the government wants to regain the trust of citizens, it will have to start giving it first.