SHILLONG, Nov 10: The United Democratic Party (UDP) on Sunday said in an era of coalition politics where split verdicts are common, political parties cannot but forge alliances to form a government.
UDP general secretary Jemino Mawthoh said the party’s attachment to the ruling MDA will have no bearing in the upcoming Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council (KHADC) elections.
He made the statement while replying to a query if the UDP will suffer in the KHADC polls given the fact that the state government is facing various charges of corruption and irregularities. “In Meghalaya, we have experienced coalition politics for many years. We are in the era of coalition politics and if one party does not get an absolute majority, naturally we need to tie up in order to form the government,” Mawthoh said.
“But what is important is to see in what way we can contribute for the progress and development of the state as we need stability,” he added.
Mawthoh, however, said the UDP being a component of the MDA does not mean it will remain quiet on the pressing issues.
“We are also against corruption. When we see that something is not going right, we point it out. It is not that we keep quiet,” he said.
He said the UDP had pointed out the irregularities and discrepancies in the power sector and even demanded the resignation of the then Power Minister and his OSD. He said the UDP ministers are also always open to any investigation.
Asked if the party will be weighed down by its presence in the MDA, Mawthoh said the UDP with eight MLAs was in the opposition during 2013-2018. He said the party had raised a lot of issues and “made sacrifices” but despite that, the number of its MLAs dropped from eight to six in 2018.
“When we joined the MDA, we were only 6 but in 2023, the number of our MLAs rose to 12. So where is the question of us being weighed down?” he argued.
Reacting to predictions that the Voice of the People Party will sweep the district council polls, Mawthoh said, “They will have their own cards to play and we have our own cards to play. We believe in the strength of the party and the grassroots support. We have been there for a long time.”
He said the UDP has many experienced leaders, who have been in public life for a long time, and that is its advantage. He also said that the outcome of elections cannot be predicted.
“We are steadfast and we will fight the elections the way we fight, maybe with a better strategy this time. But we have a very strong grassroots connection. Vote share goes up and down. It went down in the last Lok Sabha elections. Hopefully, it will go up again,” he said.
Talking about the party’s preparations for the KHADC polls, he said, “We had a meeting and we asked for identifying the candidates. We are meeting again on Monday to discuss the elections.”
“Just a few days back, we had a meeting with the HSPDP since we are together in the RDA alliance. We had a cordial and fruitful discussion. We will meet again to formulate our strategies,” he added.
