Editor,
I am in total agreement with RG Lyngdoh when he says we need to teach our legislators some badly-needed humility. I concur with him that democracy is absent in Meghalaya except during the election process and the “rulers” are beyond the reach of the “ruled”. But I am not as optimistic as Mr Lyngdoh when he says that the drive for change should be the small farmer and the small entrepreneur rather than the big industrialists. I also do not think that the majority of youth will ever learn the meaning of hard work or how to capitalise on business opportunities in such a “controlled” environment. That is just not possible In Meghalaya where the moneybags call all the shots, be it corrupt politicians, crooked contractors or rapacious coal miners! For the last several decades they have ruled us in grand colonial style. They would have given even the British a run for their money in terms of self-imposed grandeur and non-accountability. Good governance by the present lot of politicians, irrespective of which party they belong to, is just impossible, as we have learned the hard way. There will never be a government “for the people” unless the Congress is booted out and fresh faces come into the political arena. NGOs or pressure groups as some call them, are completely self-centred, immensely opportunistic and incapable of throwing up visionary leaders or incorruptible ones. They pick and chose their causes to hog the limelight and earn some “keep-quiet” money. Again we have learned that the hard way. Regional parties have been proved shallow and mercenary in their approach. So where is the way out? The tunnel is dark, and has been for a long time. Only the rich are getting richer by actively discouraging and blocking the poor farmer and the genuine entrepreneur from gaining access to funds and resources. Jobs are still being sold to the highest bidder in a fool-proof manner. I think we need not worry about the Government in Delhi at this juncture. Let us instead look to our own affairs and get our house in order first. Even if Delhi throws us Rs 1000 crore it will be gobbled up by the politician-contractor-bureaucrat nexus in the blink of an eye without any outward change in our daily lives! The only way out is for good people to rise to the occasion and start catching these thieves in the act instead of turning a blind eye as we have been conditioned to do. Elections are simply a money game in Meghalaya. We must stop waiting for the impossible to happen through prayers and elections alone. Are there no honest and courageous people left anymore?
Yours etc.,
S. Ranee
Shillong -6
A compliant, unquestioning congregation
Editor,
Patricia Mukhim’s article ‘Coping with a demon-haunted world’ ( ST May 23 2014) must surely have caused more heartburns than just a few ripples of conscience stoking the vast faithful of the Church and its preachers here in the abode of clouds. The article is an incisive expression of the wider effects of the spreading menace of the cult of devil-worship among the younger generation of our society. Like it, follow it or condemn it, I count my belief among the teeming faithful of the Church, though not without inner doubts that have been festering in my soul-searching quest for the elusive truth. The Ten Commandments prohibit the worship of graven Gods, yet such man-made creations abound in these places of worship of a particular denomination. The committed faithful can be seen consciously worshipping these graven statues, a complete disregard to the Commandments. How can this Church point fingers at other religions for praying to earthen Gods of their beliefs? While much has been written in the media about the on-going rise of cult worship in the name of the Devil, it is most disturbing that the Church maintains a stony stoic silence on the issue, perhaps, in the full knowledge that silence is golden, hoping the entire affair will simply vanish from society’s mind. But eventually the Church’s silence is a sign of sanction and acceptance of the cult’s existence. No wonder then the devil-worship tentacles have taken a firm grip right in the heart of missionary Meghalaya. It should be amply clear to the Church’s leadership that the faithful merely seek to espouse their beliefs in the form of worship attendance and unmindfully, through their acts of compliance, they religiously throng the prayer services almost as if to make an appearance for attendance. To the onlooker it would seem like a grand wedding is in progress or aptly phrased as a mass- fashion occasion. Such hypocrisy is today’s blind faith so long as the Church leaders keep their flock together and the contribution of the faithful along with the many elitist educational institutions maintain a healthy financial power base to crown the Vatican as the world’s richest country. There can be no harm if a small section of society take to devil-worship so long as the larger interests of the Church remains intact. Welcome to our world of unity in diversity.
Yours etc.,
Lewis Sooting,
Via email