Ruhullah Islami / Professor of Political Science at Ferdowsi University Mashhad.
Politics may not pay off and become merely processed discourse, i.e.: politicians imagine that after they have obtained their positions through the votes of the people, they must turn everything upside down, adopt a new policy, and follow their plans.
Lectures are given, initial plans are drawn up, various documents are issued, but they are not taken seriously by the communities, and they have little effect. The reason that policies, plans, and even strategies and various documents are not interpreted on the ground and lack influence is due to the following:
The importance of history in policymaking.
Most of those who hold political positions and positions do not care about the issue of scientific management and the background of institutions, because of their haste and political immaturity. They believe that these positions and institutions were established for the first time and that they descended from heaven to create a miracle and provide solutions to problems. However, the best solution in this regard is to be patient, to listen, to read, and to review the institution’s archive, history, and foundations.
The mechanisms of the old problems were also presented and implemented, so in this field neglecting history is the main reason for drawing spurious problems and setting priorities arbitrarily, and what is more harmful? The repetition of failed experiments.
Oral histories, documents, working groups for ministers and periodic directors, evaluation research, and providing solutions are to avoid adopting the same methods and repetition of failure. Sudden actions and keeping pace with the latest developments in policies, and then showing that they are settled is evidence of a lack of knowledge of problems on the one hand and the solutions that have been offered on the other.
The necessity of archiving, creating oral history, and allowing universities and research centers to analyze political data will lead to the crystallization of sustainable science. Of course, this process is different from review reports about activities that are often exaggerated, but rather it must be carried out by people who are responsible for evaluation, and university researchers that are different from designers and implementers. Therefore, the history of institutions with the problems that occurred to them and the solutions that were taken to address them is something that should not be forgotten, but rather should be benefited from, in addition to that, the continuation of the institution’s work and addressing the mistakes of those who supervised it with plans that give the institution continuity is better than canceling the institution or making new policies for it, this will take a long time to achieve long-term goals.
