Democracy Topsy-Turvy Which Is Manipur

Amar Yumnam *

Democracy is now being widely appreciated and increasingly accepted as the guiding principle for the assurance of common welfare and as the mechanism for evolving a sustainable solution to enduring as well as acute problems. It is to tamper with the probability of unashamed assertion and execution of group interests or vested interests that we have government. So a democratic government has the fundamental purpose of projecting public welfare and evolution of lasting mechanisms for addressing the uncertainties facing human society. It instances its capability to evolve such mechanisms more frequently than any other form of government that democracy is winning over other forms of government. This is true despite the reconsiderations being brought about by the responses or rather reactions to 9/11.

Lo! What is Happening Here: Given the above driving forces of government, the innate concern of human beings for a place in history and the very scope for periodically altering the elected representatives, any democratic government anywhere continually endeavours to assess the needs of common welfare and the general mood of the people; any democratic government anywhere is highly responsive and deeply accountable.

But responsiveness and accountability are exactly what we find conspicuous by their absence in the character of the government in Manipur. There is absolute disconnect between the needs of the general well-being of the people and the responses of the State government. There is no semblance of accountability in any development intervention being undertaken by the provincial government.

The disconnect and the lack of accountability become more pronounced the bigger the issue and the larger the intervention. Here three current examples come to mind.

First, in a democracy it is the government which should be looking for the cooperation and tolerance of people in cases where it cannot perform but should otherwise perform. Necessity is the mother of invention. That is why fire was invented. In the contemporary world, power, at least for home consumption, is considered an essential part of livelihood anywhere including Manipur. This is the reason why people even buy candles in the absence of power supplies. Whatever the case, the government should prove its power of responsiveness in at least certain critical cases of power requirements.

The need for power requirement can never be more genuine than during the examination season of students. But the ugly side of democracy came to the fore recently in Manipur when the public literally begged of the State government to ensure regular supply of power during the ongoing examinations instead of the State government appealing to the public to bear with its non-deliverance. Examinations are important not just for themselves but for the relation they have with the future of our nationhood as well. Quite unfortunately, we have come to a state where supply of power during examination season of students is something to be begged by the public from the government and something of a favour being done by the government to the students. This is the height of unresponsiveness of the State government.

The second example coming to mind is the stoppage of work after digging all about Imphal and making the State capital the filthiest one can imagine. We understand that the "leaders” have been 'delivering' a clean city to the public for months; the only thing is that we are not sure these months relate to which years. A social worker has recently gone to the extent of distributing masks to the public to protect themselves from the dirt and dust caused by these mindless digging throughout Imphal. The funniest twist to this event is the government taking it as a social service being rendered by a do-gooder instead of being insulted by the occasion. What democratic form of government are we having that it is shameless!! Whatever is the case, this is the best example of lack of accountability in the very character of the government we have.

The third is the recent State budget presented to the Assembly by the leader of the people in his capacity as the minister in charge of finance. In a democracy, the significance of budget lies in its reflection of application of mind to the issues plaguing the land. Examining the recent State budget from this angle, one is painfully struck by the absolute absence of application of mind reflected in the budget; it is nothing more than a poor history of cash-book. The recent budget do however has one significant characteristic, however, in that it can make corruption easier than ever to indulge in.

Our Prayer: Now we are left with hardly any alternative but to pray to the almighty (God is one!) to make our people fortunate enough to enjoy a responsive and accountable government sooner than later. Dear God have mercy on us.