The ugly era of organized crimes has returned to haunt Meghalaya after several decades and this has admission has come from none other than the Chief Minister of the State. This is not to say that extortion has been wiped out of the Meghalaya and that only underground outfits are involved in this. Several overground organisations also thrive on extortion and those at the receiving end are business people of all shades. Chief Minister Conrad Sangma has for the first time confessed that even his cabinet colleagues and other politicians too have been receiving demand notes. This marks the return of an ugly phase in Meghalaya’s tryst with militancy. The series of IED blasts have been triggered to drive fear into the hearts of prospective victims of extortion. Fear is what makes people pay. In the past those who resisted paying the militant outfits paid with their lives. Those doing business in Meghalaya have learnt to pay up and recover the money from goods and services by charging a higher rate for them.
Politicians in the government will not have sleepless nights since they are already making money out of every development project and the extortionists know this. It is when extortion begins to hit the hoi-polloi that a counter-revolution against this reign of terror will begin. In Nagaland budding entrepreneurs and small businesses face similar pressure from underground outfits whose pre-occupation is to make easy money from people who sweat and strive to earn an honest living. Extortion thrives when corruption in governance prevails. To eliminate extortion and other criminal tendencies good governance is imperative. And good governance requires citizens’ participation. Prof Michael Johnston of Colgate University, USA defines good governance as “legitimate, accountable, and effective ways of obtaining and using public power and resources in the pursuit of widely accepted social goals”. This definition links good governance with the rule of law, transparency and accountability, and envisages partnerships between state and society, and among citizens. Good government is also associated with justice and impartiality.
Good governance requires an integrated, long-term strategy built upon cooperation between government and citizens. It involves public participation and robust institutions. The Rule of Law, Accountability, and Transparency are technical and legal issues but are integral to producing a government that is legitimate, effective, and widely supported by citizens, as well as a civil society that is strong, open, and capable of playing a positive role in politics and government. The problem in Meghalaya today is that citizens have “othered’ the government and vice-versa. There is no longer a working relationship between the public, civil society and government owing to a trust deficit. And that trust has eroded because government lacks transparency.
