Dimapur, Aug. 2 (EMN): Opposition party Naga People’s Front (NPF) has termed the Nagaland government’s directive to all state employees to declare their ties with members of Naga political groups as either sheer ignorance of the history of Naga political movement or deliberate attempt to victimise ‘some innocent individuals’.
In a statement issued on Sunday, the party claimed that the profiling of government employees will bring more distrust between the general public and the government machinery.
“It is an open secret and a fact which cannot be denied that every Naga is connected to the issue either in one way or the other. Under such circumstances, profiling of government servants who have relatives in the Naga national movement set-up will not only be a futile exercise but would also drive the Nagas further from bringing closer to the parliamentary system of governance. Moreover, it will trigger more social unrest in our society and ultimately jeopardise the hard-earned peace process which we all, as peace loving citizens, ought to guard passionately from endangering the ongoing peace process,” read the statement.
According to the NPF, the PDA government’s recent directives ‘reminds us of the initial period of the Naga movement for independence in the 1940s and 1950s where the Naga nationalists made the government servants as a soft target’.
It reminded that past experiences have taught Nagas enough that more chaos and confusion coupled with mistrust amongst the people will only magnify which will lead to undesirable consequences.
“In the light of all these, the NPF urge the PDA government to review its decision of profiling the government servants as this exercise will only engender more suspicions within our society rather than meeting the desired result as proposed by the government of the day.
Further, the NPF while congratulating the governor of Nagaland, Mr. RN Ravi on his completion of one year in the office as governor of Nagaland, impresses upon him to put the Naga political issue in its right perspective for the interest of all stakeholders. The NPF also reminds the governor of Nagaland that Naga people in general have high hope on him as someone who is capable of delivering an honourable solution to the Naga political issue as he is a signatory to the framework agreement signed on behalf of the government of India,” it stated.
Meanwhile, the party retorted to the NDPP press statement by suggesting that the latter could not swallow ‘the bitter truth that has been revealed by the NPF president and the leader of the opposition on how a popular government should function in a parliamentary democracy’.
“The NDPP seems to have lost track even while issuing rejoinder as all irrelevant points are narrated in the form of essay just to divert the attention of the general public in order to cover up their mis-governance. The PDA government is a government which cannot take responsibilities of its own decision. Even profiling of government servants, the PDA government is desperately making an attempt to shift its responsibility although the Cabinet decided on July 3, 2020 on this very issue. Any government which cannot stand on its decision and which cannot protect its employees/citizens have no right whatsoever to run the government. Hence NPF reiterates its demand that the PDA government should step down on moral ground,” it stated.