DIMAPUR — Advisor of Information and Public Relations, Soil and Water Conservation, Imkong L Imchen, said it is time for the Ao community to be bold and stand firm on the truth adding that it is no longer a time to be timid and remain silent spectators.
Speaking at the biennial general conference of the Kohima Ongpangkong Telongjem (KOT) at Molu Ki on Saturday, Imchen stated that current political scenario mandated the Ao people to come to the forefront and actively partake in resolving issues at par with the rest of the tribes of Nagaland, stated a DIPR report.
He called upon the people of the Ongpangkong range to realise their elderly status, based on history, among the Aos and act as a mentor and guardian to the rest of the Ao people.
Imchen further expressed his deep respect and admiration on Dr. SC Jamir, former chief minister of Nagaland, who over the years had boldly and steadfastly stood for the truth and fearlessly spoke his mind for the greater good of the Naga people.
The speaker of the programme, advocate Tongpok Pongener spoke on ‘The role and responsibility of a microcosm for community upliftment.’ Pointing out that the fundamental unit of society is the family; he stated that it should be the responsibility of every family to bring up good and productive members of society who can contribute toward the growth and development of the community as a whole.
He emphasised the importance of social environment in a family, which according to him, is vital towards ensuring all round development of an individual and determined his contribution towards the community.
He further stated that good leaders can only emerge from a cohesive society and not a fragmented one. He, therefore, stressed the need to do away with divisive policies and to focus on unity and values such as honesty and tolerance as practised by the ancestors.
The outgoing president of KOT, Alemkumzuk, in his farewell speech, thanked all his colleagues for the successful completion of their two-year tenure and said that it was a privilege and honor to serve the people of Ongpangkong.
He also made a clarion call to all the Ao community to keep striving towards greater heights and to do away with malpractices in the political process so as to ensure good, honest and capable leaders emerge from among the Ao community.
The biennial general conference was attended by members residing in Kohima as well as villages under Ongpangkong range in Mokokchung. Various agenda were taken up and discussed in detail at the conference.
A new team of office bearers led by president Kilangchuba was also elected for the tenure 2025-2026.