Editor,
I wanted to let you know that I truly appreciated the sincerity and spirituality in the article, “The Church we never had” by Kit Shangpliang (ST March 2, 2013). Here in the west, the real church has become the private sphere of the human heart, because church leaders are failing their flock. The alluring aroma of the business world has contaminated the church. And as the author reminds us, unlike the mega churches today, gentle Jesus was accessible to the people.
Thank you for this article,
Yours etc.,
Deepa Majumdar
NCP then and now
Editor,
It is ironic that now with P A Sangma out of NCP, the party is being accepted as a partner in both Meghalaya and Nagaland. Maybe the neta should think of taking a RIP (retirement in peace). It is very hard to even visualise return of the heady years that P A has seen. I grieve with him.
Yours etc.,
Nesfield B Sangma
Unqualified for CM’s post?
Editor,
Apropos the news item “Congress project four names for CM’s post”(ST 28th Feb 2013), it comes as a surprise that as reported Dr R.C Laloo is not projected by the Party for the post. More surprising is that even Vincent Pala who hails from the same District as Dr Laloo favours H.D.R Lyngdoh instead . The people of Jaintia Hills would definitely feel proud to have for once a Chief Minister who hails from the District. Dr Laloo is one of the most senior Congressmen in the State and besides Dr Lapang , he is a more senior Congressman than the other three projected leaders .This non projection of his name speak volumes of the personality of Dr R.C Laloo which would seem to indicate that he is one who cannot get along well with his other party men . In fact, Dr Laloo is not known to be a sociable person even within his very own Constituency . This is unlike the trait typical of many other politicians who somehow always blend with the people irrespective of the people’s political affiliations. Moreover, in spite of being highly educated he also has not been able to deliver quality service in the Constituency. He however, continues to win from his Constituency for lack of formidable candidates to contest against him so far and for being fortunate to be in government most of the time . This shortcoming of Dr Laloo which perhaps make him undesirable to be considered by many other leaders as Chief Minister material is a big disappointment to those people who had their roots in the District and who initially had high hopes in him. Unfortunately , Dr Laloo let them down while he continued to play second fiddle by simply being a Cabinet Minister only throughout his political career. Many are of the opinion that it would be unbecoming of him if he continues to do so if he still has a sense of pride in him after being rejected by his own party men for the top post. But hunger for power will however ultimately triumph over principle . So let us wait and see
Yours etc.,
Kyrchan Dkhar,
Shillong-2
Who cares about NE election results?
Editor,
I entirely agree with Devasia Vazhayil’s, letter (ST March 1st, 2013) that the North Eastern states are a neglected lot. We simply do not figure in the leading national news channel. This is really disheartening for us who belong to the North East. At this juncture I cannot help but go back to the Sahsniang incident that took place in the month of November 2003 where nearly 4000 men, women and children were displaced from their homes in Block I and Block II area which are under Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council. Like refugees they were forced to leave their hearths and homes and belongings behind to flee for their lives. Sadly not a single print or electronic media of the country even made a mention about the tragic plight of the people of our state at that time. Therefore it does not come as a surprise this time as well when the Assembly election of the state was not given any coverage at all. Keeping optimism intact let us hope that with the formation of
new government steps will be taken by the concerned authority to see that any important activities happening in the state get appropriate coverage by the national news channel, both print and electronic media for the benefit of our state in particular and dissemination of information about us to the rest of the country in general.
Yours etc.,
Jenniefer Dkhar
Via email
Addressing election anomalies
Editor,
The Meghalaya Election 2013 was successfully conducted and for this we must congratulate the Chief Electoral Officer of the State and his team and the public as well. However, in an exercise as big and complex as this and in spite of the best of efforts there were certain lapses on the part of the authorities who conducted the elections particularly at the District level which would give reasons for grievances by quite a number of government employees who were deployed as polling officials.
Nevertheless, good sense, the spirit of cooperation and the sense of responsibility prevailed leaving everyone in the end contented that they had responsibly carried out their duties without any remorse and without any enduring grudge. As in all forms of operations , there are lessons learnt which will give scope for more improvement. Yet there are issues of concern which cannot be overlooked and simply swept under the carpet. It was reported in The Shillong Times (Feb 28, 2013) that many Government employees in West Jaintia Hills District were denied their fundamental right to vote because the Deputy Commissioner of the District failed to process the Forms for postal ballots. This lapse seemed to occur in this particular District only and nowhere else .Going by the newspaper report it appears that the concerned authority gave a lame defence for this lapse while it distinctly indicated that there has been an administrative shortcoming on his part.
The matter is serious and this calls for a proper enquiry by the Government and particularly by the Chief Electoral Officer who must realise that all his efforts to woo voters has been sabotaged by his own officers instead. Those who were found to be irresponsible should be brought to book to serve as a lesson to others to be more conscientious and meticulous in future. At the same time the leaders of Meghalaya State Government Employees Federation must also dig into the matter rigorously and demand positive action from the Government to ensure that its members are not subjected to such forms of injustice in future.
Yours etc.,
P Marbaniang,
Shillong-3