Following the ruling party’s counter to its open representation to chief minister Neiphiu Rio over a range of issues, NPP State unit said the NDPP’s rejoinder proved the party’s nature of targeting any party, organization or individual blindly without digging into the truth. While it was natural for a ruling party to defend the government, NPP said it felt NDPP had lost people-centric goals and ethics while doing so.
In a statement, NPP said it was amused that a party had used bigoted wisdom and wild rhetoric to make its stand clear when failure of the State government in handling the COVID-19 pandemic was known to majority of the people.
Clarifying that it was not interested in playing politics nor seeking political mileage out of this pandemic, NPP asserted that being a people-centric party, it was its right and duty to question the government on matters related to welfare of the public, adding for doing that it did not require certificate of any party, including NDPP.
Referring to the ruling party’s questioning heads of educational institutions for entering politics, the statement pointed that there was no provision in Indian constitution that barred such persons from entering the political arena. It alleged that some NDPP leaders were not only running educational institutions but also malls, media houses, resorts, etc.
Mentioning how certain leaders had amassed huge wealth and built an empire of properties in Nagaland, other States and even abroad worth billions of rupees, NPP said this would not have been possible with salary alone.
On the ruling party claiming in its rejoinder that the government was consulting experts on COVID-19 pandemic, NPP wondered how the government could then commit one blunder after another when advised by experts.
“Are we to understand that the experts are giving erroneous advice to the government or the government is not listening and acting on the advice given by these experts? It is for the experts themselves and the government to find out what is the truth,” the statement added. Reacting to the NDPP’s rejoinder, NPP claimed that its national president and Meghalaya chief minister Conrad Sangma was leading his State in an incredible manner for which he was the most sought-after leader not only in Meghalaya but across the Northeast. He had built the party’s ethos and image to the stature of a national party, it added.
According to the statement, NDPP was so frustrated and insecure during the Assembly by-election and Lok Sabha election that it had to lure two NPP MLAs to secure win. It advised the ruling party to examine its own actions before pointing fingers at others.
The party further asked NDPP to do a fact check and understand reasons and logic behind the legitimate questions raised in the open representation, which it had labelled as “negative criticism, misinformation and personalized attacks”.
It also accused the ruling coalition of getting embroiled in scams.
Further clarifying that none of its leaders had any personal enmity with the State government, the party’s Nagaland unit asserted that it was ever ready to support the government, provided the latter was on the right track, adding it was also open to any kind of discussion or consultation with the government on any matter of public importance.
However, till the government was proactive towards the cause of general public and did not act for general welfare of people, the party declared that it would continue highlighting the lapses to ensure that general public were not deprived of their rights.
NPP Nagaland unit called upon all right-thinking citizens and general public not to be misled by such emotional rhetoric aimed at individuals for protecting a failed government, whose malicious and corrupt intentions were already out in the public.
Emphasising that every individual’s voice mattered, the party demanded that no person should be deprived of his/her right to express personal opinion intended for common good.
Right to expression is a fundamental right under the Indian constitution, while the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights ensures that “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers”, the statement added.