Things are ugly, very ugly. This however has not moved the United Naga Council one bit. Makes one wonder where the profundity of the slogan ‘Nagalim for Christ’ has gone. This becomes relevant in the backdrop of the open appeals issued by the Mao Churches, the Manipur Baptist Church, Tribal Churches Leaders’ Forum, Manipur and others to allow the drivers and their helpers stranded at Mao Gate for one month now to proceed. However all their appeals have fallen on deaf ears and this is where it becomes necessary to question whether one can use God’s name just for the convenience of some people or whether the name of God has been used in true faith. Making things worse is the counter blockade imposed at different points in the valley area and clearly the divide between the hills and the valley cannot get clearer than this. Nothing seems to be right for Manipur and her people and this is extremely worrying. Just take a look at the ground reality. Sadar Hills and Jiribam are yet to be declared full fledged districts of Manipur, yet the economic blockade called against the design of the Government to declare the same as districts is already more than 30 days now. Does this make any sense ? No official announcement has been made and yet the people are already reeling under the impact of the lifelines of the State being cut off for over 30 days. Is this acceptable ? Let the readers decide.
Chief Minister O Ibobi and his men must certainly be a worried lot. So while the UNC has shown no indication that the blockade will be taken off anytime, the JAC of Sadar Hills has been sticking to its stand asking all the Congress members to resign. Apart from the ultimatum laid down to resign from the Congress, the party too stands boycotted at Sadar Hills. With Assembly election just round the corner, this cannot be a comfortable proposition for the Chief Minister and his men. Moreover remember the Congress too stands boycotted at Churachandpur where the bodies of the nine killed in the uprising against the three Bills last year are still lying in state. In the Naga dominated districts too, the Congress has been boycotted and things cannot get worse than this. This is about the political equation ahead of the Assembly election and it remains to be seen how the Government plans to tackle the ongoing economic blockade. True, the president of the UNC and one of the office bearers are already in custody, but far from softening the stand of the UNC, the arrest has only led to the intensification of the blockade. Here it is important for the UNC to come around to the fact that the blockade has hit the common people and not those who sit in the corridors of power. Why make the common people suffer is the question that follows. Rest assured, this question again will not move the UNC one bit.
Source: The Sangai Express
