Friday, January 11, 2019

Taking a step back from the front line of Liberal Democracy

I am not a fanatical anything, not even a fanatical Liberal Democrat. That is, in some quarters, an admission of a lack of commitment, but I find it hard to maintain a high level of enthusiasm for many things other than Ros. Regardless of the circumstances, my desire to do things comes in waves, rather than in a constant flow.

I first joined the Liberal Party in 1984, and it was fun. I did a whole bunch of things, met a slew of interesting people and had some amazing experiences. And then, after about eight years, I drifted away from everyday activity. Yes, I carried on with a few things, mostly one-off jobs like being a Returning Officer, or candidate assessing, but I didn’t hold office at any level really, and didn’t miss it that much. Yes, I had other distractions, and I wasn’t exactly adrift from politics altogether, but I wasn’t what you would call fully engaged in the wonderful world of the Liberal Democrats.

That changed when I became single again. The Party came searching for me in the guise of Flick Rea, the then London Region Administrator. It started with merely stewarding a rally, but before long I was waist-deep in the Party organisation. I dislike disorder, and have never met the political body yet that couldn’t be improved by an understanding of bureaucracy, its limits and its merits. And I am, on my day, a pretty good bureaucrat.

I met Ros. That was life-changing, and wouldn’t have happened had I retained my distance. And, in truth, she is my primary focus.

But it’s been nearly fifteen years now, and my enthusiasm for political bureaucracy is waning a bit. Not for Liberal Democracy, you understand, but for carrying out jobs over a period of time. And, when that happens, it’s time to step back a little. And so, I advised my beloved Local Party that I would be standing down as Treasurer at the end of the year.

At our Annual General Meeting, I presented my report, and explained that I thought that my enthusiasm for the job was not what it might be, and that, as a result, it would be better if I stood down. They were very understanding, I thought, until they concluded that there was a vacancy for Chair, and might I be interested in filling it?

It didn’t take me long to turn the offer down. I’ve been a Local Party Chair, and I know how that book ends. It was, on reflection, nice to be asked though, as it implied that I might be thought capable of doing a half-decent job.

And so I’ve gained a number of midweek evenings, and lost a monthly task of updating and reconciling the accounts. It isn’t an arduous job, but it could be done better - a more ambitious fundraising effort (not one of my strengths, I fear) might be valuable.

The Local Party know where to find me if they need me, and if I can help, I will. But it’s time for a break, to recharge the batteries of enthusiasm, and let my mind wander just a little. And, in time, and if they want me, I’ll be back. You should never turn your back on your friends, and Mid Suffolk Liberal Democrats are, I’m proud to say, my friends.

1 comment:

  1. Good for you! As someone who has also had periods of being very involved, and periods of doing not much more than turning up on polling day, I think this is very healthy. It is great that we have very committed activists, but is just as important that we have a larger pool of people who feel valued just for turning up every now and again. And it should be easy to move between the two. Activist culture can become stressful, and I know too many people who have gone from being activists to not even being members of the party.

    ReplyDelete