Dimapur, July 28 (EMN): While anticipating honesty and faithfulness, the Nagaland Pradesh Congress Committee (NPCC) opined that ‘self-declaration’ as directed by the state government on its employees to declare their relations with the Naga political groups should not be an issue in the state.
NPCC, in a statement issued by its president K Therie, stated that the ‘circumstances and situation under which we live cannot be ignored, while reading the profiles’. To substantiate his claim, Therie stated the situation was compounded with wrong policy and unemployment making recruitments easy.
“23 years of negotiations and 90 years of political movement has made Nagaland stagnant. Children born after the ceasefire which was signed in 1997 are now post graduates,” stated Therie.
He has attributed two factors responsible for the prevailing situation. Firstly, he has held the government of India accountable for giving recognition to multi-factions with no proper ceasefire ground rules to operate and no provisions for food and water. “This has encouraged extortion, kidnapping, assassinations and a host of anti-social activities that plague Nagaland today,” alleged Therie.
On the other hand, Therie has pointed out to the state government’s policy to merely facilitate and support the ongoing peace process.
“When council of ministers are dining together with faction leaders, when faction leaders are escorted by government forces and when faction cadres are loosed to extort with sophisticated weapons, the only way out for peaceful citizens is to join them for protection,” alleged Therie.
Therie, therefore, stated that the meaning to facilitate could be interpreted in many forms. In this context, he alleged that many government officials are working undercover to facilitate them with information, while many government employees may or may not know they have relatives who have joined factions and many faction cadres are also employed and many enjoy pensions.
In the given situation, he stated that unemployment has reached the danger mark already with no jobs coupled with the closed doors of banks and other financial institutions.
“If the state government’s policy is to merely facilitate, what is wrong in facilitating or joining them? Should the mother crab be blamed or the children blamed for walking in a skewed manner?” Therie asked.
