Khekiye K. Sema
These intervening period of being immersed 24/7 in the assignment as a Member of the High Power Committee (HPC), constituted by the Government of Nagaland has generally kept one out of the loop. Now that HPC has formally submitted its report to the Chief Minister of Nagaland on the 10th June 2015 one is relieved to revert to an interactive mode. Having been given the first hand opportunity to take a journey to the depths of the rotten core of the prevalent system, simultaneously being perpetuated by the NPGs and the Government machinery at the cost of the silenced majority, the HPC, like everyone else, has been left wondering whether the present Government has the political will and the courage to follow through the various findings and recommendations of the HPC to reform and streamline the process in a transparent manner. At this stage it is but a matter of an honourable responsibility on the part of the HPC to strictly maintain absolute confidentiality and not divulge its contents in any public forum or print media to afford a reasonable time frame to the Government to act or react…but the Government is humbly reminded not take the matters of serious concerns reflected therein, for granted without recourse. At the end of the day the public is bound to claim their right to know. This much is being placed on record to affirm with absolute conviction that the Nagas cannot remotely hope to take a positive step forward under the present non-transparent operative norms without accountability. So much for HPC for now…A great many events and issues of public importance have floated by these past few months with assortments of views that merited public discourse and debates having already been expressed. Be that as it may, one is still tempted to revive the first focus on the “All Party Government” sans Opposition Bench. That this is a broad daylight rape of Democracy in the open street of Nagaland is a foregone conclusion that needs no further analysis or comments. Oh yes…Nagas are a race of pathfinders. The Nagas once showed the Indians how deftly they could circumvent the existing regulations to cross the Assembly defection floor…until the Parliament further barricaded this exit route. The Nagas now hold another dubious distinction of teaching not only India but the world how an opposition-less democracy can function. All credits go to Honb’le Chief Minister, boss of an overwhelming single party majority in the House, who had no option but to honourably induct their pre-election coalition partners into his ministry which of course was politically and ethically correct. Yet he walked the extra mile not into the camp of his sulking comrades but into the shabby hutment of the Congress and shook their hungry ‘Hand’ thus finally capping his achievement with an “All Party Coalition Government” without an Opposition Bench despite the odds being heavily stacked in his favour to comfortably run a Government free of any unnecessary coalition encumbrances. By any given standards, it is a portrayal of an ‘unparalleled talent’ in the art of a power struggle on a political chess board of mismanaged intrigues. It is indeed an exceptional stage now set with a wide open field for an unrestrained all season turkey shoot without opposition. In order to justify their diabolic game of survival, the comical reason proffered for public consumption for setting up such a Government is to collectively find a lasting Naga Political solution to a protracted negotiation. Towards this end the newly inducted Ministers, Parliamentary Secretaries and Advisors, emulating their already entrenched peers, will have by now minutely assessed their respective Departmental budgets to ascertain what extent they can find their lasting political solution in their protracted negotiation with their voting constituents…so there is a ring of truth to it after all! But more on a realistically serious note the question is: How do they propose to achieve the other real political solution as an all party conglomerate? The State Government has never been acknowledged as a negotiating partner by the GoI all these past years and has thus far been an inconsequential spectator with inconsequential initiative. The only distance of involvement covered so far by the State Government in the matter of Naga Political negotiated settlement is the “equi-distance” and “equi-closeness” political party debates on the floor of the June July August House. Dr. S.C. Jamir received bullets of gratitude from his equi-distant friends while Mr. Nephieu Rio harvested rich dividends through his equi-closeness business for two terms as Chief Minister and had only his miscalculated bottomless pocket to blame for messing up his and Mr.T.R. Zaliang’s political equilibrium during the third term. Now that both ‘equi-distance’ and ‘equi-closeness’ policies have merged, we the citizens of Nagaland must tighten our belts and brace ourselves to silently face the onslaught of ‘equi-plunder’ nexus that has reached our shores. The difficult responsibility of the Opposition Bench in a democracy now squarely rests with the people of Nagaland. Unfortunately however, we are not going to be much of an opposition because the only characteristic response we have left in us is our gutless passive silence even as we grovel to collect the crumbs from the Master’s table by humbly listening to the Master’s voice.
Creating a Joint Legislative Committee (JLC) can only be seen as a charade to create a politically correct picture for public consumption in the absence of a chartered vision with real substance of intent and purpose. It would be a huge waste of time and money if the sole purpose of JLC is to collectively go up to Delhi on a shopping holiday and ineffectually plead with the Prime Minister of India on the side for an early solution without a bargaining clout. Then flood the daily papers on their return with pictures of JLC presenting a huge bouquet and a Naga jacket to the Prime Minister smiling from ear to ear for the gullible Nagas to gloat over. The State Government may not be sitting on the main negotiation table but it has a tremendous potentiality to steer the course of events toward a more proactive conclusions by generating a mass movement based on true and fair understanding of our history. No one in their right frame of mind would endorse the existence of so many factions as a right step towards finding a lasting solution. The mushrooming of Factions focused on bleeding the populace with their camouflaged multiple sovereign taxes rather than focus on the real issue of self-determination has only helped to vitiate the already complex proposition. The uncontaminated truth is that we as a race have been thoroughly compromised beyond redemption. The political parties have diluted their existence by hobnobbing with one faction or the other for their political survival at the cost of the greater good of our people. The Church leadership has equally become redundant as they hide behind their simplistic theological definition that the Church has no role to play in the affairs of the State as if their congregation is living in outer space. The audacity lies in their adoption of double standards by fearlessly meddling in the affairs of the State on the issue of prohibition because the State cannot point a gun at them. Yet when the Church and its congregation have effectively been silenced by the guns of the NPGs, the Church leaders would rather fear the gun than the Lord that they profess only on a pulpit on Sundays. It is about time for the State and the Church leaders to get their acts together by coordinating and mobilising mass movement in line with the efforts of FNR and ACAUT and work hard for an all Faction unity. This is the only possible way forward towards a final solution.
There is an imperative need to recognise that the times have changed. The GoI has unequivocally shifted gear from outright arms conflict with the Nagas to defining this problem as a political problem requiring political solution and finally acknowledging the “unique history” of the Nagas officially. The credit for the indispensable role played by the NPGs in inducing this critical shift of understanding within the mind frame of the GoI distancing itself from direct conflict to that of negotiated settlement must honourably be given where it is due. However, despite this altered circumstance there has been no change of attitude in the NPG mindset which is purely guided by monitory and egocentric driven priorities. At this point in time it has become a common knowledge that age has necessarily taken over its natural toll on Mr. Isac Swu who now only serve the purpose of a window dressing to cushion a top heavy Tangkhul establishment with a semblance of Tribal equilibrium facade. For all practical purpose therefore, it is Mr. Muivah and only Mr. Muivah who is calling all the shots within the NSCN (IM) set up under a convenient garb of a voiceless, submissive Collective Leadership. Be that as it may, no one will deny that NSCN-IM has kept the flame of negotiation alive thus far. It is the overwhelming arrogance in keeping the masses blindfolded as to what is being bartered with their future without their knowledge that is the damning aspect which is utterly unpalatable and unacceptable. It is incumbent upon the State Government to therefore take a responsible initiative to filter the honest will of the people. The destiny of the Nagas of Nagaland cannot be used as a bargaining chip to solve the problems of other sectors and keep us dragged in the dirt for so many years.
The writer is IAS (Rtd)
Forest Colony, Kohima
