Two apex tribe bodies- Ao Senden (AS) and Sumi Hoho (SH)- have expressed deep concern over recent statements made by advisor school education Dr. Kekhrielhoutuo Yhome, and demanded that the state government clarify on whether Dr. Yhome’s statement represented its official policy?
In a joint statement, AS president Chubawati Longchar and SH president I. Nikheto Jimomi maintained that Dr. Yhome’s remarks, which proposed a ten-year ban on recruiting Ao and Sumi tribe members as government primary teachers, based on linguistic grounds, has sparked outrage within communities.
The two tribe bodies said if Dr. Yhome’s remarks was the official policy of the state government then it must provide “a transparent explanation for such a discriminatory policy.” If this did not reflect government policy, then AS and SH demanded that Dr. Yhome publicly retract his statement since his “biased remarks” not only sowed division but also undermined the credibility of the education department.
The bodies pointed out that Dr. Yhome’s “discriminatory proposal” raised serious constitutional and ethical questions. They pointed out that nowhere in the Indian Constitution is an advisor empowered to make decisions that disproportionately affected specific tribal communities’ employment opportunities. They said “such actions not only undermine the principles of equality enshrined in our constitution but also perpetuate division within our society.”
The apex bodies condemned Dr. Yhome’s “persistence in justifying and reiterating” his statement despite the widespread condemnation from student organizations and the affected tribal communities. They strongly endorsed the press statement issued by Central Nagaland Students’ Association, Ao Kaketshir Mungdang and Sümi Kiphimi Küqhakulu against Yhome’s remarks.
They said it was also imperative to acknowledge the significant contributions of the Ao and Sumi tribes to Nagaland’s educational landscape. “The Sumi tribe, with its vast number of villages spanning seven districts, and the Ao tribe, being one of the major tribes with a sizable population and willing to go and serve in any parts of the state, have undoubtedly contributed substantially to the teaching profession in government primary schools across the state,” they said.
Further, the two apex bodies also urged the legislators representing the Ao and Sumi tribes to swiftly address the issue and clarify whether Dr. Yhome’s statement reflected government policy or his personal opinion.
They said as representatives of the Ao and Sumi populace, it was their duty to safeguard the rights and opportunities of the people they served. “We hold the legislators of the Ao and Sumi tribes accountable for any adverse effects resulting from the unjust denial of employment opportunities for our qualified and deserving youth,” the two bodies said.