Editor,
“India should have a President, who is not blind, dumb and deaf. India should have a thinking and functional President”….these were the words spoken by the BJP-supported candidate PA Sangma.
We, the Association of Challenged People Meghalaya would like an explanation to the statement made by the aforementioned political figure. The statement made by him plainly suggests that we, people with disability are ‘by default’ being taken our rights away from us, which is ironic since being a political figure, he should know all about the rights of people with disability. The definition of Democracy that India prides itself with has lost its meaning because when it comes to practice, we don’t really see it happening especially with us ‘people with disability’. We are not suggesting that all the political figures ignore us, but seeing such a statement made by one, who has been in the field for such a long time makes us feel that we are aliens in our own country. Are we not part of the country? Don’t we contribute towards the development of society? Don’t our votes count?. We may be disabled, but nothing has ever stopped us from achieving our goals, because contrary to what Mr PA. Sangma thinks, we do have the ability to think and function like everyone else. We would like to make everyone aware, especially Mr Purno A Sangma that we are able and responsible citizens in spite of our disability and that he should stop labeling people on the basis of their disability. Instead he should do something, as a responsible citizen, towards the inclusion of people with disability.
Yours etc.,
Melip D Sangma
(President of Association of Challenged People, Meghalaya)
Put people first, not their disability!
Editor,
There are 70 million people with disabilities in India more than the population of countries like Canada, UK and Australia. In Meghalaya which you represent as a legislator, there are about one lakh people with disabilities and they are full first class citizens, entitled to equal rights. In their daily lives they continuously battle exclusion and restriction to their full participation in society, face discrimination, abuse, and poverty. 70% of them though have EPIC cards and are entitled to vote…
By such alienating and discriminatory statements Mr PA Sangma has lost half of them which comprise of those; re-quoting his own words are ‘blind, dumb, deaf, non thinking, non functional…..
Further, Sangma should realise that freedom of expression does not mean that one has the right to insult others, which is an infringement of others’ rights. Mr Sangma does not deserve to be a candidate for the president of this country. To begin with, the national parties supporting him should just throw him out? The disability sector and persons with disability, their families, their friends, their neighbours, in Meghalaya are upset and feel terribly insulted by the remarks made by him. A responsible and sensitive President is a role model for the entire nation, which Mr. Sangma has already failed to be. The language he used sets a tone and also reflects on the kind of person he is. It is an indication of how he perceives others and their worth in the world. Our words can often reflect our practice. We know that a person’s self image is strongly tied to the words or labels used to describe that person.
For the information of Mr PA Sangma and for the benefit of all, here are some thoughts that we must keep in mind when we speak or come across people with disabilities:
People with a disability are PEOPLE first, that’s why it’s important not to reduce them to their disability. And if you are not sure about how to refer to a person with a disability – Mr. President? Ask the person!
Yours etc.,
Gary M G Nengnong,
Bethany Society, Meghalaya
A demagogue as President?
Editor,
Our man, a tribal continues to exhibit his intense desire to be elected President of India. He is a very busy man traveling the length and breadth of the country citing all the possible reasons why legislators should elect him to be the next President. We are made to understand that he is the son of the soil and a patriot par excellence. We know that he was the MP for many decades, was a Union Minister and an ex-speaker of the Lok Sabha too. He was an MLA and a Chief Minister also. This time he wants support to win political power by appealing to people’s emotions and prejudices. This demagoguery is self-defeating.
The Christian religion has also been dragged in the process as a buttressing factor. A true Christian is known by his lifestyle and not merely by inserting ones name in the Church Register or merely by issuing a statement. The Bible clearly tells us – “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” (ja.1:27niv) In short, to obey Christ’s teachings. Anyone short of these criteria can, at best, claim to be a student who wants to be a Christian. Since I am not eligible to vote in the election for the President and I do not know whom my MLA and my MP will vote for I can only request the candidate to contest, if he must, but refrain from dragging the tribal community and using Christianity to buttress his personal ambitions.
Yours etc.
Sangot Roy.
Shillong -1
MPSC- a whiff of fresh air
Editor,
The positive move to streamline the functioning of the Meghalaya Public Service Commission (MPSC) by the new Chairman as reported in the news item ‘MPSC on reformation course”(ST 7th July 2012) is a refreshing bit of information. This is welcome news and has brought a sigh relief to the people of the state who are fed up with the many unsavoury and negative reports about the Commission down the years. This goes to show that putting the right people in place pays can really make a definite change for the better. For so long the Chairman and the Members of the Commission have been chosen because of their political connections and influence thereby sacrificing quality and standards at the cost of the credibility of the Commission. Presently, two of the members are merely retired Branch Managers of Banks with nothing else to pride themselves on but they were rewarded with the post for being close to the political masters. The qualification of the present Chairman with a broad outlook and vast experience in public administration is way beyond that of the present Members of the Commission. Therefore, it is high time that these Members be replaced by sufficiently qualified people who will at least have a reasonable equation in quality and standard with the present Chairman so that the status of the Commission is brought up to the level it is expected to. I am sure that there are no dearth of people in the State provided the Government takes a reasonable and firm decision as it did in the process of selecting the present Chairman. The people are optimistic and are anxiously waiting for such a positive step from the Government in the best interest of public service.
Yours etc.,
C Passah,
Jowai