Choice is yours (December 9)

The seventh Manipur Legislative Assembly, which came to an abrupt end, was marked by political chaos. Two Ministries were foisted and then pulled down by political opportunists, who were ready to stoop to any level for a Ministerial kursi (chair). The electorate had sent the MLAs to the august House to serve their and State interest. Instead they treated the entire people of Manipur with contempt. As soon as they are declared elected the MLAs turned back to the electorates.

Becoming a Minister for obvious reasons was the agenda. Hence those, who missed the bus in the Ministry formation, started rocking the boat with the support from disgruntled elements in the Opposition camp. Those leaders who could not spend a minute without power indulged in engineering defections, splits and new alignments. With the onslaught of the Opposition, the Nipamacha Government could not stay long. 

Everybody still remembers how Radhabinod Koijam became the Chief Minister after the Nipamacha regime was dethroned. He ditched colleagues in the Opposition fort to switch sides with Nipamacha and company. That is not all. Radhabinod did another somersault. He finally teamed up with the opposition bandwagon and occupied the highest seat of power. He, too, was not allowed to stay long. The end result is the current President Rule.

Now that elections to the eighth Manipur Legislative Assembly would be held early next year, if all is well. We will be getting the right to elect our representatives again. On June 18 people directed their anger against the elected MLAs and MPs. The Assembly was torched and many other Government buildings were destroyed. This seems to have sent the message to our elected representatives that the people will no longer tolerate the "dirty game" being played by the people's representatives. 

The boycott of MLAs and MPs, which is yet to be lifted, is as good as rejection of the former representatives by the people. But one thing is certain that these leaders who have been tested and failed will be strong contenders in the next Assembly elections as well. Everyone of us in Manipur is talking about the need of a political change, without which Manipur will continue to drift away. There is no reason to believe that the former representatives will cause a political change and implement a new system that works. 

Hence the State needs new faces who will prove to be leaders in real sense of the term. But people will have to isolate the wolf in sheep's clothing. Manipur is today plagued with insurmountable problems thanks to the elected leaders. But we should also realize that they were elected in the first place by none other than the people themselves. They were their choice. It needs to be pointed out that we are suffering today as a result of our faults. Many of us sold our democratic rights for a few hundred-rupee notes or for a mere feast. To usher in a new Manipur the voters will have to act responsibly. Whether you want a better or worse government, the choice is yours.

(Courtesy: The Sangai Express)

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