Discrimination against NE people own creation: Lawyer

Principal Correspondent
KOHIMA, SEPTEMBER 17

The discrimination and problems faced by the people of the North East Region, including Nagaland is self creation, said Cooperate Lawyer and Advisor to Embassies, New Delhi, Angi Seb.
Speaking as the resource person during the awareness programme on ‘Social responsibility and accountability’ organized by All Nagaland College Students’ Union (ANCSU) at Zonal Council Hall here today, Seb said there are cases of discrimination against the people of the region, but getting into the details of many cases it is the creation of our own people.
She said posting of semi-nude photos and instances of behaviour in inebriated conditions as well as the high prevalent live-in relations are some of the factors that contribute to the misunderstanding of the society in NE in the metros.
She therefore said as students they should have the social responsibility and be accountable in their behavior and the manner in which they appear before the people.  She also went on to state that people from the region easily fall prey to fraudsters in the name of providing job and also technical education and have been cheated with lakhs of rupees. She mentioned that recently Picasso College at Delhi collected the admission fees in the name of Computer Animation Course from more than 40 students, but the authorities vanished with the money.
Expressing that lawyers from the region have been trying to help the people of the region to fight their cases, she called up the students’ community to be aware of the facts and to avoid behaviors but be accountable.
Senior journalist and vice president of Nagaland Press Association, H Chishi said the concept of accountability is part of a strategy used for and by people to have the means, resources and opportunities to influence decision-making and affect development outcome.
Accountability means ensuring that officials in public, private and voluntary organisations are answerable for their actions and that there is redress when duties and commitments are not met, he said while lamenting that “today in our society accountability has become thing of the past”.
Lack of accountability means corruption, he said adding that without accountability talking of social responsibility is meaningless as they are inter-related aspect.
Pointing that the world community has agreed that corruption is worse than terrorism, because corruption has become root of all evils and anti-social elements in the society, he said Nagaland is no exception to this.
He queried as how are our politicians and officers, including junior officers like account officer, engineer, project director among others, accumulating disproportionate assets?
He lamented that there is no check and balance and that our system is totally wrong today.
On social responsibility, he asked where is the position of our NGOs? Are they really doing their jobs? “Today people have started to question the role and responsibility of our NGOs. Accountability of our NGOs has been questioned,” he said.
Expressing that fighting corruption has emerged as a key issue, Chishi said policymakers, businesses, and NGOs, have begun to confront this issue while at the same time the general level of understanding about corruption has risen.
“Until recently, it was not uncommon to hear someone discuss anti-corruption strictly in law enforcement terms,” he said.
The biggest cause of corruption in today in our society is undoubtedly the political leadership at the helm of affairs, he said adding that “from this fountainhead of corruption flow various streams of corrupt practices which plague the political, economic and social activities in the society”.
Since the corruption flows down from the top it is not easy to stop it or limit it, and it has a devastating effect on the administration and the society, he added.
Maintaining that State Assembly and Comptroller and Auditor General has revealed startling reports about the unaccountability in Nagaland too, he lamented that action taken is almost nil.
“As a pressman we know many things but situation does not allow us to disclose things. Many things have been disclosed but no reaction from the people,” he added.
Short speeches were also delivered by NSF assistant general secretary Kesosul Christopher Ltu and ENSF social & cultural secretary Achingba.
Chaired by ANCSU general secretary, Katho P. Awomi, the programme commenced with Baptist College Fellowship general secretary Noyingbemo saying the invocation while vote of thanks was pronounced by ANCSU social & cultural secretary Zhoku Chakhesang.