Scripting a farce that is Manipur : Fertile soil for jokers
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: February 27, 2012 -

Roads, that too stretches on the National Highways breaking apart within 60 days of major rehabilitation works, state of the art modern infrastructure inaugurated amid much fanfare and razzmatazz still far from being operational, development works taking more than 4/5 years to complete and far from easing the normal day to day existence of the common people multiplying their inconveniences, a joke of a power supply system where the people receive electricity for less than 5 hours in a day, a burgeoning culture of unaccountability where those holding positions of power and responsibility have come under the impression that bending the rules and regulations is but a status statement.

Add the mushrooming number of armed groups, all masquerading as sons of the soil who have taken upon themselves the onerous task of defining what is patriotism and what is not and Manipur fits the bill of a place where jokers prosper and where the voice of sanity and reasoning finds no space in the public domain.

The inter-play of various factors, a confused public, the emergence of a class of people who thrive on the unholy nexus of the politicians-bureaucrats-contractors ably aided by the numerous sons of the soil, an educated but selfish class of people whose vision refuses to extend beyond their noses, the pre-dominance of an elite group of people who are nothing much more than pretenders, are clearly visible in scripting the tragedy of Manipur as we see it today.

When even the Prime Minister of the country can be ‘persuaded’ to inaugurate and overlook the bluff that has been passed off as the Inter-State Bus Terminus and the City Convention Centre, then one does not need to look too far to really understand how the governance mechanism of this land runs and is being administered.

Apathy amounting to criminal negligence is what Manipur has been suffering all these years and while the due mechanisms available within a system of Government understood as a democracy are expected to correct these flaws, it is the wilful tampering of these mechanisms that has become the fashion statement of the power players in the State.

It is a status statement to break and flout the rules and regulations and the most visible aspect of this mindset is being played out on a daily basis on the roads of Imphal where uniformed personnel and those who come under the coverage of the flag post class can bend all traffic regulations with impunity.

When the ability to divert public funds into one's private pocket, when arsonists and destructors of public properties are given positions of high social status and a space in the public domain, when the winnability quotient of a candidate in the election is calculated and seen through his/her bank balance then it is a damning statement on how far values and ethics have been eroded and Manipur today finds herself in such a stage.

No one, least of all the public seems to be bothered. This was best exemplified in the recently conducted election to the 10th Manipur Legislative Assembly.

Not a single issue of public interest figured anywhere as factors to decide the choice of the people.

The 121 days economic blockade, the humiliation and inconveniences that the people had to face while lining up outside petrol pumps to get five litres of fuel the next day, the joke of the manner in which the Government tried to tackle the situation etc, figured nowhere in the election, just like water running off the back of a duck.

The HSLC examination is already on and many schools affiliated to the CBSE are in the midst of their final year exam and young students have to study with the lights emanating from candles and from the battery inverters, which again do not last long enough as they could not be recharged fully, thanks to the 4/5 hours of power supply that the people get in a day.

The issues are many, but there is a common thread running through all these issues to make up the whole story of Manipur-an arrogant, impotent Government and a public which just does not know when to say No to all the nonsense.