A people’s leader in his own right, former A people’s leader in his own right, former Meghalaya home minister Robert Garnett Lyngdoh firmly believes that while a team of personalities capable of leading Meghalaya is yet to be seen as the Assembly elections knock, a viable option will be a “united” regional coalition – one that addresses development and unemployment, besides other burning issues confronting the state.A representative of the erstwhile Laitumkhrah constituency from 1998 to 2008, Lyngdoh had stayed away from active politics since he felt that it was not the right “vehicle” to achieve his goals. The former vice-chancellor of Martin Luther Christian University, who was suspended from the Congress for six years prior to the 2008 elections, is not too keen to re-enter electoral politics as of now, but is open to any advisory role that he finds fit to take up.Saurav Bora caught up with the former Congress leader at his Nongrim Hills residence for an exclusive interview on Thursday evening.
Here are the excerpts:
ST: How would you judge the political scenario ahead of the Assembly elections?
RG: Unfortunately, I don’t see anything cohesive or substantial coming out from the noises the parties are making. Most parties are busy pointing fingers at each other. Rather than assessing themselves, they seem to be assessing others. It’s more like wanting to win by default…(laughs)…I don’t think that’s the correct approach considering that people nowadays are much more knowledgeable, with an even bigger percentage of literate voters in the rural areas….Such finger-pointing is not giving the average voter a chance to zero in on one party… on the contrary, it is creating confusion …we always want the voter to vote responsibly, so it’s the responsibility of the players in the field to provide a viable option….
The state is going through a bad spell, economy is down, youths don’t see any future, government jobs are more or less saturated….there are hardly any self-employment avenues…nobody seems to be addressing these issues…it would be better if parties focus on these issues rather than criticising each other.
ST: As a former Congressman, how do you see the ruling party faring in the elections?
RG: See, at the end of the day, the Congress and the UDP and its allies will get the most seats, followed by the NPP, while the remainder will be divided between KHNAM, BJP, NCP, PDF….The reason I say this is that Congress is standing in all 60 seats, which gives them a greater chance to get more seats…In Garo Hills – the seat share will be evenly divided between NPP and Congress. In Khasi/Jaintia Hills, the UDP-HSPDP will be getting the majority while the NPP may not get that many seats
ST: There has been an exodus of members from the Congress. Do you think the camp is nervous?
RG: I think I agree to it to some extent….But I also agree with AICC leader CP Joshi who said that the party has been cleansed because the dissenters have moved out…So, the ones that are in the party can make the party stronger…
ST: Do you think anti-incumbency will hurt Congress’ prospects?
RG: More than the Congress, I think people are not happy with (chief minister) Mukul Sangma…be it his style of leadership or the (lack of) resolve to bring about policies. Even in Garo Hills there is disenchantment…This does not augur well for the unity of the party…it’s even worse for elections…
ST: You recently said that Meghalaya needs a viable team. Which party comes close to such a team?
RG: It’s a combination of personalities, maybe from within the party. I think people are looking forward to a good team that can produce results… As of now, I haven’t seen anything like this happen. The credibility of the Congress is very low… I don’t see the credibility of the NPP any better as they seem to have more people in the ranks but these are the low-hanging fruits (laughs)…
Contrary to the perception in regard to a state like Meghalaya, today, it’s no longer about personality politics…but a team of people that can deliver. We have a good chunk of young voters, who are looking at a good team that can produce good results.
ST: Personally, what do you want?
RG: I think today’s political parties should look at building bridges between communities rather than building walls. People are also fed up with the trend of VIP culture and parties need to address that…
Secondly, there should be parity between the three pillars of democracy – the legislature, executive, judiciary…today the legislature totally tramples over the executive…It uses transfers, postings as a weapon to keep the executive under control, and as such, the principles of checks and balances are compromised. The executive is there to check the legislature….Then again, the judiciary is stepping into the role of the executive and creating confusion …these have to be addressed…I wish the executive is strong enough to stand up and play its role…
Thirdly, the government has to put in place rules and regulations to make pressure groups more transparent and accountable, be it in regard to their membership, sources of income, et al. This can be best addressed if the Opposition is vibrant and vocal as pressure groups take the credit when the Opposition is weak. Besides, job opportunities will have to be created.
ST: Is the unity of non-Congress parties the need of the hour?
RG: Yes, because unlike the Congress who are contesting all the 60 seats, the rest aren’t. But of course, the mood is swaying towards a non-Congress government. People are rooting for regional parties. If you look at some of the other states also, there are regional parties who are ruling, because people feel that they know the local problems better than the national parties…But unfortunately, they are less disciplined…there are too many leaders than followers…but if they overcome that, they will make a viable option…
ST: Does money power play a role?
RG: Yes. The reason people are asking for money is because they don’t want to invest their dreams on a candidate…..But I would also say that in some constituencies, there is political wisdom among the people who are looking at holistic development rather than just lollypops …parties should come together and address the aspirations of the people.
ST: Do coalitions work in Meghalaya?
RG: Coalitions formed post-elections don’t generally work…It’s more an alliance of convenience…but pre-election, it may, because then it’s for a purpose…there is more cohesiveness.
ST: What is your perception about BJP?
RG: In Meghalaya, I don’t see them doing very well…Unfortunately, the BJP has moved away from development agenda…now they seem to be caught up in red herrings such as beef ban and national anthem … (laughs)
ST: Will the regional alliance – UDP-HSPDP – make an impact in the elections?
RG: I think by virtue of their support in Khasi/Jaintia Hills, they should do well…
ST: So, in the midst of “noise and confusion”, how would you advise the electorate in regard to choosing their representatives?
RG: They should vote responsibly…should look for a team of good people they can trust and who they feel can deliver, especially in the development front…our rural economy is in a rut…they have to develop the rural economy, have to stem the flow from rural to urban areas…make the people in the rural areas build the capacity to see opportunities there, which can also lead to a lot of goodwill among communities.
ST: Who do you think will rule Meghalaya from 2018?
RG: (Laughs)… That’s a tough one…At the end of the day, it will fall upon the regional parties…
ST: Now, coming to you, why did you leave politics?
RG: The reason I left politics was that I did not see it was the best vehicle….I joined politics in 1997 to empower people…..I tried to build a team …bring in transparency…But, I was may be considered a threat and hence not liked for what I tried to do. In 2007, I was suspended from the party for six years… so that I could not contest from the party… I would say I was more popular with the people not with their representatives.
ST: You had sacrificed the erstwhile Laitumkhrah seat in for you sister, M. Ampareen Lyngdoh, even as people had a lot of expectations from you. Why?
RG: I was not comfortable fighting with my sister…I feel that politics should be fought in the street and family matters should remain in the family…
ST: Are you planning to re-enter electoral politics?
RG: (Pauses)…Not as of now…But I am open for any advisory role…I would say that I would be eager to help people through vehicles other than politics…The strain and effort that goes into politics leaves you very weak…the efforts are too much compared to what you want to actually achieve…Besides, when you have egoistic people in the political arena, it becomes more difficult to bring them together for a purpose.