Reshuffle : Talks doing the round :: Say No to Yes Men
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: September 13 2018 -

It is not yet official but if what is doing the round in political circles is true then Manipur may well see the first Ministry reshuffle of the BJP led coalition Government which came to power in 2017.

So if the talk turns out to be true, then one may see some in the Council of Ministers getting dropped and some from the BJP stable and its allies getting inducted into the Ministry.

And to be sure, the reshuffle will be effected only after getting the go ahead signal from the Centre.

No one really knows on what basis Ministers are dropped or inducted but there is a general consensus that non-performing Ministers are dropped and those who show promises are inducted.

This is the bright side of the story which can be told openly when any reshuffle takes place, but if the past is any indication, the very exercise of reshuffle can also give room for voices of discontent and even internal revolt from the MLAs who feel they have been ‘wronged.’

On the other hand, there could be reasons for dropping any Minister or inducting any MLA into the Council of Ministers which are not spelt out at all, but which are generally ‘known’ to the keen observers.

A veteran politician that he is, Chief Minister N Biren will surely know the upside and downside of a Ministry reshuffle and more than certain that he will keep this in mind while going in for the reshuffle, for which talk is gaining traction in the political circles.

Whatever the case, for the sake of Manipur it is hoped that any reshuffle is done for the good of the people and the place.

Mediocrity has been the bane of Manipur for too long and the least that a popularly elected Government can do or should endeavour to do is to deliver governance and for this one needs committed people at the helm.

Apart from Ministry reshuffle, the Chief Minister should also take a relook at the people who have surrounded him, ever since he took office.

Chamchas there will be many but as a veteran, N Biren Singh should know that chamchas only say what he would like to hear, not what he ought to hear.

This is where a difference arises between the Yes Men and the Thinking Men.

More than a year in office and the Chief Minister must have come to know who are there to just say what he wants to hear and those who are there to say what ought to be said for the better of all.

It will obviously need conviction and the courage to do it, but it will do the Chief Minister a whole lot of good if he can devise a means to silence those who are there only to butter his ego and promote those who are there to help him improve his performance.

To come anywhere near what has been suggested, it goes without saying that the Chief Minister must be able to digest criticisms that come his way.

As a former media person, Chief Minister N Biren must surely know how the media works here, and it would do good not to take everything that is written in the media to heart, but learn to take it and sort out the grains from the chaffs.

These suggestions can help him and the BJP, especially with the Lok Sabha elections due in the early part of next year.