VPP says MDA govt does not know Lokayukta Act, should step down

SHILLONG, Jan 24: Citing the abject failure of the government to correctly interpret the Meghalaya Lokayukta Act that they had passed in 2014, the Voice of the People Party (VPP) on Wednesday asked the NPP-led MDA II Government to step down.
Speaking at a public meeting on Wednesday at Mawlai, VPP president Ardent Miller Basaiawmoit noted that the state government had originally defended its choice to remove the three Lokayukta officials without cause, arguing that the Act did not allow for the appointment of retired officers.
“It would be more appropriate for the state government to resign on a moral note, as it is ignorant of the provisions of the Act that it drafted,” the VPP supremo said.
In the meantime, he declared that severe action should be taken against IAS officers who have misled or misinterpreted the Act.
Basaiawmoit continued, “The concerned officers should be held accountable for misinterpreting the Act and defaming the government.”
Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma has defended the decision to fire the Lokayukta officials by stating that the government would not have to pay salaries by appointing officers who are currently employed in their place.
Basaiawmoit responded by saying that this claim is unfounded because the government has wasted public money on numerous political appointments that are needless.
“We have demanded the immediate removal of all political appointees and filed a petition to that effect. The government should immediately remove all the political appointees if it is serious about saving the public exchequer,” Basaiawmoit stated.  In addition to party general secretary Ricky AJ Syngkon, the three party MLAs — Adelbert Nongrum, Brightstarwell Marbaniang, and Heaving Stone Kharpran — were present at the public meeting.
The chief minister also came under heavy fire from social activist Kingstone Bolwari Sangma.
“It is a shock that none other than the chief minister is defending the unceremonious termination of the three officers of the Meghalaya Lokayukta, by citing the reason that appointment of a serving official is to save money. Is the chief minister really concerned about saving the state exchequer? Does he really mean what he is saying? If so, I dare him to immediately remove and terminate all those political appointees in various departments in the government. I also humbly request the chief minister to explain to the citizens of the state the importance of political appointments, its main purposes and their contribution for the growth and progress of the state,” Kingstone said in a statement on Wednesday.