‘TR is Chief Minister by technicality sans legality’

Kohima, August 6 (MExN): The Naga People’s Front has stated that “TR Zeliang continues to be the Chief Minister by blatant aberration of the laws and sheer technicality”.  

The NPF Central Office through a press release from the Media & Press Bureau reminded that the fifteen day amnesty period “to condone the travesty” of having defied the whip issued by NPF Chief Whip Kiyanilie Peseyie had expired and that there is no turning back. “The die is cast!” it added.  

It insisted that Zeliang received “ill-advices” in filing the petition for disqualification of the ten NPF legislators and argued, “He is not the ticket-issuing authority for the NPF party.”  

“To begin with, he is not the Chief Whip of the NPF party and he would do well to keep in mind that if it was not for the action of the Speaker to support him, the whip issued by him ought to have been rejected outright,” it maintained.  

The NPF Central also took exception to the allegations made by “a nascent Media Cell of an imaginary NPF party with a non-existent and unauthorized Interim President” against party President Dr Shurhozelie Liezietsu and Secretary General KG Kenye claiming that the duo was trying to banish and sideline both Zeliang and Neiphiu Rio.  

It also ridiculed claims that “Rio revived Dr Shurhozelie’s political career from abject wilderness.”  

It recalled Rio’s association with the Congress party and stated that when the latter had resigned as Home Minister in September 2002, it was the Naga People’s Council, the forerunner of the NPF, which provided him a home “from where he could recover and fight back”.  

The NPF also recalled Rio being reduced to a minority when in the later part of 2004 following the downsizing of the Ministry, Z. Obed mustered the support of 17 NPF legislators demanding that Rio be replaced. “But party President Dr Shurhozelie, who was elected to the post at the General Convention of the party in Dimapur in the later part of 2003 replacing Vizol even though he, Dr Shurhozelie was an elected member, extended full support to the then minority Chief Minister and Rio could overcome the revolt within the NPF party,” it reminded.  

Further claiming that it was on TR Zeliang’s insistence that Rio was suspended from the party, the NPF Central dared Zeliang to be honest enough to own it up, “especially so since the two of them are together now.”