SHILLONG, May 1: The UDP does not seem to be gravely concerned over the possibility of sitting in the opposition post the declaration of results for the Sohiong Assembly poll due on May 10, and has conveniently dismissed the ruling NPP’s statement in this regard as mere rhetoric.
NPP’s spokesperson Bajop Pyngrope had on Sunday stated that the UDP will be asked to sit in the opposition after the declaration of the election results for the Sohiong seat on May 13.
Reacting to the statement, UDP vice-president Allantry Franklin Dkhar said the NPP’s statement appears to be a part of their electioneering campaign to lure the electorate of Sohiong.
Dkhar said the UDP would have taken the statement seriously if it had come from someone with authority in the NPP. “Considering the current situation, it is clear that the statement is a poll gimmick and nothing else,” Dkhar said.
Pyngrope’s statement came after the UDP claimed that the equation will change post May 13 if the party led by Metbah Lyngdoh wins the Sohiong seat.
“We have heard from the UDP leaders that they will change the government after May 13. The UDP now needs to decide whether it will continue to be in the government after the election,” Pyngrope had said while addressing a public rally for NPP candidate Samlin Malngiang at Rangshken in Sohiong on Saturday.
If the UDP wants to change the government, it should rather be in the opposition after the election result, Pyngrope had said.
If the UDP is removed from the MDA equation and if the NPP wins the Sohiong seat, the government would still enjoy a comfortable majority in the Assembly with 35 members. The NPP has a strength of 26 in the 59-member House while the UDP has 11.
