Some of those who voted yes had this to say:
• Yes, in the sense that we do not know if the money is reaching the people it should be reaching, but it is transparent enough to see where the money is going. Posh houses, fancy cars, high salary, jet-setting and capacity building workshops is where the money is going. The area in which the money is being spent is quite obvious, we just need to find out for the donors whether the money is being used according to their guideline.
• Against all odds, those NGOs are working for prevention of HIV/AIDS. So lets give them the benefit of doubt and say that they are really using the funds in a appropriate manner.
• Don’t you see and read about the many workshops that are being organized on prevention and awareness of HIV/AIDS? All these activities are being supported by the funding; and so there is transparency.
• Lots of work is being done in the field of HIV/AIDS and when we look at the activities in the last 20 years, we will know that the funding received for HIV/AIDS has been well used. My only regret is that positive people should also be part of the decision making and that the total amount received should be made public and also the remarks on how the funds was utilized should also be published, so that the image of the HIV/AIDS campaign is not tarnished.
Some of those who voted no had this to say:
• No, because the ngo's in Nagaland are not working in public field they are doing everything in between four walls of their office.
• Nagaland seems to be the six highest prevalent HIV and ADS rate in India. So Money must be pouring in from many quarters. Just recently we are seeing some billboards and stickers on awareness on HIV. But are the really victims getting their share?? Many positive people are from economically backward backgrounds and they cant even effort a days square meal. Therefore the government should provide not only nutritional support but also provide better sustenance for them, instead of diverting the fund for ghost activities.
• Everyone looks for their own interest and not for the welfare or betterment for those who are being infected or affected by HIV/AIDS.
• Absolutely not. It is a pity that funds for HIV/AIDS is now becoming another source of making quick bucks, considering the amount of resources poured into it. Lack of accountability and transparency is rotting the society not just in the government sector but now also in noble causes like these.
• This is one of the tragedies of the HIV campaign. Millions of rupees have been pumped in into Nagaland and still we do not see any progress which we can all say is in the right direction. The money which is coming should be used in consultation with positive people and those affected by HIV. It will be dangerous to leave it to the discretion of NGOs to utilise the money.
• No, they only organize lip service programs
Some of those who voted Others had this to say:
• No one can actually assess whether the AIDS money is being used well. The public don’t even know how much money is coming into Nagaland. No one will actually be able to say because the AIDS fund is controlled by a small group of elites. This is the problem. We can’t even get information about how much money is coming and from where. These small groups of people control everything and as long as they are controlling everything there will be no transparency.
• This is a very important question which has been raised. But very difficult to quantify if there is transparency in the way HIV/AIDS money is being used. Firstly, the public are not aware of how much money is coming for HIV/AIDS from the different international doners and the government department. Secondly, we also don’t know who the recipients are and so cannot assess each according to their own. Thirdly, we do not know if money is being used accordingly and if there has been any honest auditing done. Since there is no public information on all these counts, there is no choice but to generalize the state of affairs. As of now, the public opinion is suspicious that there is no transparency in how money meant for HIV/AIDS is being used and this is really hampering the HIV/AIDS campaign. Unless this suspicion is removed, the campaign will also be under constant distrust. The best way therefore is to have a Citizens Public Audit for the last 10 years. This way the Naga public will know if the money meant for them is being well-used.
• Cant say because the ration of HIV+ people to HIV- people is decreasing but there is always lapses on the part of the govt. There is still discrimination on HIV+ people and the government needs to do more on its part to stop discrimination.
