By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, Feb 5: The Hynniewtrep Youth Council (HYC) on Thursday launched a sharp attack on the Meghalaya government, accusing it of making arbitrary and non-transparent appointments of Officers on Special Duty (OSDs) to Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma.
In a strongly worded statement, HYC president Roy Kupar Synrem condemned the appointments as being carried out “behind closed doors” without any public advertisement, competitive selection process, or even disclosure of eligibility criteria.
The organisation highlighted that these OSDs enjoy substantial perks — including salaries, allowances, office infrastructure, official vehicles, and other privileges — all funded by public money, yet remain completely unaccountable to the people of Meghalaya.
“These appointments are a slap in the face to thousands of educated unemployed youths in the state,” Synrem said. “While government vacancies remain unfilled for years, recruitment exams are repeatedly delayed or cancelled, and young people struggle to find jobs, a select few are quietly handed high-status positions with no transparency.”
The HYC questioned the identity, qualifications, and true purpose of these OSDs, asking pointedly: “Who are these individuals? What are their qualifications? And whose interests do they actually serve?”
The youth body accused the MDA Government and the Chief Minister of treating the state exchequer as a personal fund, criticising what it called “lavish spending” on OSDs whose roles, responsibilities, and necessity remain unclear and unjustified.
“Public money should be used for education, healthcare, infrastructure, and job creation — not for building parallel power centres or political conveniences,” the statement read.
The HYC demanded immediate public disclosure of complete details of all OSD appointments, clear explanation of the legal basis and selection process followed, full disclosure of salaries, allowances, and total expenditure incurred on these posts, besides an immediate stop to all backdoor appointments that bypass established rules and procedures.
The organisation warned that continued silence or inaction by the government would only strengthen the widespread public perception that governance in Meghalaya has been reduced to patronage and favouritism.
HYC further appealed to civil society organisations, unemployed youths, students, and concerned citizens to speak out against the alleged misuse of public funds and the steady erosion of transparency and accountability in the state.
“Silence today will only legitimise corruption tomorrow,” the statement cautioned.
While reiterating that it is not opposed to good governance, the HYC made it clear it stands firmly against unaccountable and opaque governance.
The organisation also served a stern warning that if the government continues to ignore these legitimate public concerns, the HYC will have no option but to intensify democratic agitation in the interest of transparency, youth justice, and responsible use of public resources.
