SHILLONG, Nov 18: A series of allegations about corruption, manipulations and illegalities against the two-and-half-year-old multi-party MDA coalition Government may have failed to move the conglomerate but the stink of corruption has evoked a sharp reaction from some of the noted members of the civil society here.
The Shillong Times on Wednesday spoke to people from varied backgrounds and sought their thoughts on the issues which are being flagged for some time now.
Former Home Minister, RG Lyngdoh while sharing his views on the matter said that issue of illegal coal mining and its transportation is not a new issue which is yet to be resolved.
“Now I think government should take the whole responsibility and ensure a proper inquiry to regularise everything,” Lyngdoh said while pointing out that any Opposition in the Assembly would try to take advantage of the allegations and responsibility is on the government to clear the doubts.
Echoing similar views, retired bureaucrat and activist, Toki Blah said that this government is run by coal barons and people who invest in coal will not have any interest in ordering a probe to find out what is the truth behind the matter.
“There cannot be smoke without fire and everyone is talking about coal but only the government says there is no coal mining,” he said, adding “We are having businessmen as politicians, and politicians are not in politics to govern but to make money.”
He also said that most of the ministers in the incumbent government are constituency-centric and they are interested only in their constituency except the chief minister, deputy chief minister and Health minister who are talking about issues of the state.
A retired teacher and former president of Khasi Jaintia Hills Deficit School Teachers Association, ED Nongsiang said that any corruption is not acceptable while urging the government to stop illegal coal transportation instead of making excuses.
“If there is any corruption anywhere, the government should come out clean because common people like us expect people in power to bring us development and not corruption,” Nongsiang added.
Though the demand for a probe into the allegations have been made from different fronts, the government so far has refrained from ordering a probe into any of the allegations and instead the it has asked the local audit funds to conduct a detailed auditing into the alleged misappropriation of funds in the GHADC.
In recent times, allegations of corruption have been made in matters pertaining to special assistance grants in district councils, tendering order of Saubhagya project and smart metering system and even in the implementation of Ganol Hydro Power project leaving apart the burning issue of illegal transportation of coal.
Though there have been continuous demands from civil societies and political parties asking the government to order a probe to clear all the doubts, the state government so far has turned a deaf ear.
CSWO president, Agnes Kharshiing, who herself was attacked by miscreants in East Jaintia Hills a couple of years back while she was taking pictures of illegal coal mining and transportation, said that NGT guidelines continue to be violated in the state.
The CSWO leader insists on a CBI inquiry into the matter as she feels that the state is being looted and while politicians continue to get richer, the common people continue to get poorer.
Another citizen and a retired banker, Barnabas Nongbah observed that illegal transportation was going on earlier though he does not know the present situation.
“The money is shared by all or else how come politicians would buy property everywhere in Shillong,” he said while asking the government to order a probe into illegal transportation of coal.