Opinion piece: A hopeful future?

Opinion piece: A hopeful future?

As the board of DWARS Limburg, we wish everyone all the best for this year. With everyone, we hope the year will be and remain a bit positive. We also wish everyone nice and good contact with loved ones. Let's help each other, see and hear each other and look and listen to each other.

What will this year look like? I'm sure several people are wondering. How long will the coronavirus last? Can I take up a hobby again this year? Can I visit a vulnerable family member this year or more often? And how will things continue in many other areas of society? Can schools stay open? Can we do something about waiting lists in the mental health system? Can we take each other with us in tackling and dealing with climate change? Can we halt the advance of the ‘underworld’ and perhaps even (one day) reverse it?

A few times now we have heard the words ‘new momentum’. This is something we are promised but it is not yet very clear what it means. What we do know is that within several ministries, people from sectors other than politics are ending up. For instance, a gentleman with experience within healthcare (Ernst Kuipers) will go to work as minister of health and a gentleman with experience within science (and education), Robbert Dijkgraaf, will be responsible for the areas of education, culture and science. It is possible that their experiences outside politics could actually change politics and policy on the inside in a positive way.

Much can be said about the coalition agreement, but the fact seems to be mainly that the coalition agreement was not really made in outline form while this was promised (Tubantia, 2021). In ordinary human language, this means that the main features of an issue are written down. Also, the influence of other parties on the agreement seems to have been small to absent (Tubantia, 2021). Furthermore, it appears that a lot of money is spent on unclear plans. This is ‘dangerous’ because people who influence plans within politics (so-called lobbyists) can directly or indirectly bring in money themselves. Thus, the role of the Lower House seems very important, perhaps more important than ever. After all, they can (still) have their influence on cabinet policies. So it is up to us to contribute to a good campaign in the coming months so that the power of GroenLinks becomes and remains as great as possible!

Reference

Tubantia (2021). Pieter Omtzigt on new cabinet: Wrong people in the wrong places. Accessed 8 January 2022 from www.tubantia.nl/enschede/pieter-omtzigt-over-nieuw- cabinet-I-had-done-it-completely-otherwise~af9c43ba/