By H H Mohrmen
Paul Lyngdoh, Minister in charge of Tourism, Social Welfare, etc., is right when he says, “Politics is a long-distance race.” Indeed the true image of a political party will become clear over time. The people will see in the long run whether the new political party lives up to peples’ expectations or not. Paul Lyngdoh’s statement to the press, obliquely referring to the Voice of the People Party’s (VPP) clean politics campaign, rebuked it as an unrealistic goal. The impression given is that the party may succeed in one or two elections but will struggle to sustain itself in the long run. While his detractors wish that the senior and shrewd politician in the state is wrong in making this assertion, the signs, however, speak otherwise.
MDC Election: A Different Ball Game Altogether
The VPP – the newest political party in the state is riding high after its resounding victory in the Shillong seat during the last Lok Sabha election. Banking on this popularity, like an overexcited runner, the leaders of the party announced their list of candidates for the Khasi Hills and Jaintia Hills Autonomous District Council elections even before the referee blew the whistle. Whether this excitement will lead to the party repeating its spring success remains to be seen.
The party seems confident of winning the two Autonomous District Councils (ADCs) based on its performance in the last MP election, but everybody knows this is not necessarily true. Elections of members to the district councils are a different ball game altogether. In fact, every election is unique, and in the case of the MDC elections, local issues play a more prominent role.
In the MDC election, not only will regional issues influence the outcome, but clan and relationship dynamics will also play a significant role in people’s decisions about whom they elect to represent them in the ADC.
In a previous column, after the VPP won the Shillong parliamentary seat with a thumping majority, this column suggested that the party succeeded in winning the hearts of more than half of the voters because of its three core agenda: clean politics, which vows to fight rampant corruption in the state; doing away with nepotism in government job appointments, contracts, and supply work; and eradicating poverty in the state. Ironically, however, there are allegations of nepotism against the election committee of the party, even in the allotment of tickets to its candidates.
There also appears to be no clear strategy in the allocation of party tickets while the selection of candidates has also exposed a lack of experience among those making key decisions. For instance, in a situation where two or more candidates from a village with the largest population in the constituency seek the party’s ticket, that ticket was instead issued to a candidate from a smaller village. In such cases, the Party should consider selecting a candidate from the larger village to ensure that the party wins the constituency.
Unsurprisingly, most candidates are new faces, but they should not necessarily be people who are unpopular or little known to the public. Selecting such candidates to contest from a party ticket will make it easy for the opposing party to win in the particular seat.
The Conflict Within: Adelbert vs. the Election Committee
The internal conflict within the party is one of the most embarrassing and damaging situations this young party has encountered. The fact that the party allowed the issue to enter the public domain shows that it lacks mechanisms to address critical internal matters. It is not to say that other parties do not have similar kinds of problems, but it only proves that the party is no different from the others. When one of the only four MLAs of the VPP in the Assembly had to openly voice his displeasure over the Party’s decision to allot tickets in his constituency without his consent, it was clear that there is something amiss in the party system.
It is a serious matter when an MLA of the constituency raises a flag and requests the election committee to hold off the allotment of tickets to candidates from his area, only for the request to be ignored. The question is: does the committee know the constituency better than its representative?
The party spokesperson’s statement that the party is supreme and its decision overrides all other opinions points to a dictatorial attitude in the party’s decision-making mechanism. If the high command in the party does not even listen to its MLA, can it be expected that it will pay heed to the opinion of its ordinary members? The claim that the Party’s high command is the ultimate authority also raises questions about its democratic credentials. In a democracy, ultimate power is expected to rest with the general public, not with a select few in a high command.
Another serious allegation against the election committee of the Party is that a relative of a member of the election committee was given a ticket over a candidate suggested by the MLA. This suggests that the Party is not above family influence. The Party’s claim that it will fight against nepotism in the functioning of the state is empty rhetoric if the Party does not practice what it preaches. The decision of the committee, which is going to cause major damage to the image of the VPP’s campaign for clean elections, is in selecting a candidate to contest from one of the constituencies in Jowai.
Loss of the Clean Politics Campaign Sheen
The VPP had claimed to be different and committed to fighting corruption with clean politics and clean elections. However, this claim now appears abandoned when an old hand in politics was given a ticket to contest from one of the prestigious Jowai constituencies.
The party has contradicted its vow to select only fresh candidates by making an exception for a candidate from Jowai. This particular candidate, who has contested four elections and won two under Congress tickets, is a habitual defector. In the last legislative assembly election, he switched to the Trinamool Congress and contested on the party ticket after initially seeking a United Democratic Party ticket. He was an MDC for ten years and also served as the Chief Executive Member of the Council. Why was an exception made in his case? If the Party is banking on a “winning horse,” in that case, where is the difference between the VPP and other parties?
Moreover, many of the fresh candidates are inexperienced in public work. If the party is serious about bringing change, it should consider candidates with education, experience, and credibility in public life, even if they are not party members. And experience in public life does not necessarily mean politics. However, as in other parties, the influence of local party leaders remains strong, often at the expense of the right candidate. The VPP is proving to be no different from other parties, making it an uphill task to win the two ADCs in the state.
Winning the Two ADCs: The Immediate Goal
If the VPP aims to bring change to the state, its ultimate goal must be to win the Assembly elections. In a previous article, it was noted that the journey to the Assembly begins with the ADCs. The party must win and secure power in the two ADCs if it is to succeed in the state Assembly. However, it now appears that even winning a comfortable majority in the two ADCs that it contests will be a tough task.
The road to the Assembly will largely depend on how the Party performs in running the ADCs, as people will judge its capabilities based on its performance. With fresh candidates, many of whom have no prior experience in public service, the challenge of making a mark in the ADCs is significant.
Giving the VPP the benefit of the doubt, the crucial question is how the Party plans to perform if it wins the election to the ADCs. With less than four years until the 2028 Assembly election, it will have to prove its worth quickly. What new policies, programs, or projects will it introduce in the ADCs to differentiate itself from others? Does the VPP have the capability and capacity to manage the ADCs alone? If not, then the coalition factor will come into play, and the party will have to accommodate the demands of its coalition partner, so where is the difference between the VPP and the other parties?
It is unfortunate that in just a few months, the VPP has lost its sheen as the savior of the state or at least the ‘jaidbynriew’. It is clear that if it does not perform well in the MDC elections, its popularity will decline even further.