Spinning an election manifesto Spin doctors at work
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: November 01 2011 -

Election manifestoes are essentially the plans and outlines of political parties on which they assure to take the people through to better times if voted to power at the election and invariably the contents of all such manifestoes stay true to their ideological moorings. In short it is a promise, politically articulating their aims and objectives and promising what they have up their sleeves for the people if voted to power.

This is the text book understanding of election manifestoes at its most basic, but as with everything that comes within the realm of real politiks, election manifestoes have come to be increasingly seen as something which have been crafted by some hand picked spin doctors to be quoted and referred to while addressing a public meeting only to be consigned to the dust bin of public memory the moment the election is over.

Probably this was what Professor Ksh Bimola meant when she rubbished election manifestoes and dubbed them meaningless. Such a mindset or attitude towards election manifestoes or rather what a political party has to say at election time has not come overnight.

It has been a gradual process and is directly proportionate to the growing disillusionment with the political process, especially in States like Manipur where everything that can go wrong has gone wrong and everything that can go right has been jeopardised, deliberately or through sheer apathy of the political class.

The most pressing issue in the minds of the people at the moment is undoubtedly the ongoing economic blockade on the National Highways. A slight readjustment of the focus and the attention of the people will shift from the blockade per se to the manner in which the lifelines of the people can be held to ransom so easily and so effectively.

Blockades, bandhs etc on the National Highways leading to Manipur are not new. It has been there for ages, though the first ever organised and marathonesque blockade was experienced in 2005 when the All Naga Students' Association, Manipur imposed the 52 days economic blockade.

The next major blockade was in 2010 when the United Naga Council and ANSAM jointly imposed the 62 days economic blockade. In between there were a number of cases when the Highways were reduced to the status of deserted routes with all goods trucks staying off the roads.

In a span of 6 years, Manipur is experiencing her third major blockade running into three months now and increasing and in such a scenario it is easy to understand why there has been a growing need to open as many land routes connecting Manipur with the outside world. Blockades will become redundant if they are rendered toothless and the only way to do this is to stop relying on only one National Highways to keep the 27 odd lakh people of the State fed and clothed.

For the election to the 9th Assembly in 2007, all the political parties came out with their election manifestoes and presented them before the people. Promises galore were made and obviously all were addressed at taking the people and the land forward. By virtue of being in power, a look back at the election manifesto of the Congress would be interesting.

The election in 2007 came just two years after the crippling 2005 economic blockade and with this still hanging over the heads of quite a large number of people, it was not surprising to see the Congress place priority on opening as many routes as possible to connect the State with the outside world.

The promise to convert Tongjei Maril or Old Cachar Road to NH-53 A featured prominently in the election manifesto of the Congress then. The spin doctors obviously had done their homework well but the fact that their good work has not been taken forward by the Congress candidates who got elected and went on to form the Government is there for all to see and suffer.

Tongjei Maril came to the consciousness of the Government only during the 62 days economic blockade in 2010, giving a new understanding to episodic response. Not only this, the Congress had promised to initiate the construction of Thinungei-Jiribam road by converting it to NH 150-A but till date it has not come out from the pages of the election manifesto.

Micro hydel projects over the Tuivai river and Irang river have remained just that, a vision drawn up by the brilliant minds of the spin doctors and the promise to increase the power generated by the Leimakhong Heavy Fuel Power Project will perhaps go down as one of the most ludicrous jokes played on the people.

These are but some examples that come to mind immediately but the overall message should not be lost on us. It is an unfortunate commentary on the largest democracy in the world that in some parts of this country, election manifestoes have been reduced to the status of some ad jingle, which merely entice the buyers without bothering to deliver.

It may not be surprising if it turns out that the election manifestoes of major political parties are scripted and planned by some copy writers for a fee. So do not be surprised if the State Congress coins some word which may sound strangely familiar to Dil Mange More the next time round.