Critical time for Manipur : Rallying around the issue
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: January 15, 2013 -

The wearer of the shoe knows where it pinches and perhaps no one will fit this bill better than Chief Minister O Ibobi at the moment.

It is still not yet very clear what transpired in the series of meetings that the Chief Minister has had with the Prime Minister, Union Home Minister, UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi and other top notch political leaders at Delhi, but surely the pressure must be immense with the political negotiation between the Centre and the NSCN (IM) reportedly at its final stage.

In as much as the political dialogue between the IM faction of the NSCN and the Government of India is at a critical phase, so is it for Manipur.

Not the time to rock the boat.

Certainly not the right time to plunge the State into a state of political anarchy or leadership crisis. This much must be clear to all those who matter.

The Sangai Express is not an apologist for the Chief Minister, not by any stretch of the imagination, but this is the time for the people and the political leaders to rally around him and extend all possible co-operation.

There is every reason to strengthen the hand of the Chief Minister at this point of time, for what we are talking about now, at this moment, concerns the future of Manipur and her people.

Not that there is any imminent threat to the present political leadership, but with uncertainty being the hallmark of politics, especially as understood in the context of Manipur, nothing should be left to chance.

Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown and surely the pressure that must be mounting on the Chief Minister to come to terms with the conditions arranged by the Centre must be immense.

So far, Mr O Ibobi has not demonstrated any signal that he is ready to buckle under any pressure likely to be mounted by Delhi in its bid to arrive at a settlement with the NSCN (IM), but a blow from within will only make his position more vulnerable.

This is the last thing that Manipur needs right now. By commenting on this point, The Sangai Express is not in any way hinting that there is a threat to his leadership, but a reminder to keep the boat steady at this point of time is in line.

This is what political pundits will prescribe. At critical times, it is imperative to rally around an issue and strengthen the hand of the leadership which is there to address the issue.

Does not need political wizardry to understand that Manipur is passing through a critical phase, with different demands and issues posing a direct threat to her existence as a political and social entity.

In all probability, Delhi and the NSCN (IM) must have wrapped up their political negotiations and the stage may have reached that point where all that is needed is a nod from the Chief Ministers of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam and Manipur.

This is where the need for Chief Minister O Ibobi to bargain from a position of strength becomes all that more important and any political crisis in Imphal at this point of time would amount to ditching the issue which concerns Manipur.