Some of those who voted YES had this to say:
• One can certainly claim that majority of the people are by large honest and have integrity. Most of the Nagas live in villages and no one can deny that they earn their livelihood through their sheer sweat and hard work. They are proud people and with much integrity. Maybe one can say that the villagers are much more honest than those living in towns.
• Honesty and integrity in what situation and context? Generally I can say that most Nagas are honest and have integrity and respect for certain core values in life. At the same time, there is dishonesty in certain areas of life, especially when it comes to survival questions. There is no black and white answer in this matter.
• i can... but met many nagas in govt. office whom i can't vouch for that. Sex and money has diluted our honesty and integrity.
• In an ironic way, I think majority of the Nagas are still honest and having integrity. It does not mean that Nagas are not corrupt. Nagaland is one of the most corrupt places and the rate of poverty is very high. What I mean is that Nagas are honest about their dishonesty and the degeneration of our values and integrity. We are honestly admitting our weaknesses. The intention of every Naga is not to be evil or cruel. People are not being dishonest with malicious contempt. Its the situation and circumstances that have made Nagas to be dishonest. It is about survival.
• Yes, there is still some people exist who is honest n have integrity.
• If you are a Naga you will know and understand the reason
Some of those who voted NO had this to say:
• No, Nagas have lost the moral compass to guide them in life. In the past, no matter how elementary and basic Nagas were, their moral compass was very high and strong and it was this moral compass that guided them through history. But today, Nagas have lost all sense of their moral compass and this is also the reason why the ill-effects of its consequences can be seen so clearly in all forms of life. Corruption is increasing, nepotism has reached its heights, there is so much of mis-governance, extortion has reached its breaking point and the Naga National Movement has been broken into factionalisms; and there are so many clear indicators where Nagas have lost their moral compass and this is destroying them completely.
• Look at the any body..... even at the home we are corrupted.....integrity???? any one we meet the first thing we look at his out fit and then ask." ki manu ase"?
• No, Because we are selfish
• Nagas have lost all sense of honesty, integrity and truthfulness. Today, the Nagas are losing their ethical values and this itself will cause lot of negative consequences in the present as well and for posterity.
• we are honestly dishonest.
• hehe no! the Question itself is very funny
• Look around and experience it
• The nagas is not yet realise her creator
• Integrity has already ran out when westernization came in. WE NEED TO BE CIVILIZE FIRST.
• Integrity of our people is fading away from us. I believe it's our greed and corrupted thinking tearing our Nagas apart.
• I feel with all these prevailing corruptions and issues in our land how can we claim that we are still HONEST LIKE BEFORE?
• There is no way.
• No, ashamed of the question itself.
• No, no, and no. Nagas have lost all their self-respect due to their love of money, power and fame…please don’t ask us Nagas about integrity..all double standard people are in state today.
• No way! What honest, sincerity? Nagas are rated No 1 (dishonest state in India) I should say. And I truly affirm that the wholeness of Nagas prevail – fraud, cheat, lazy…
• No…! Never, Should we call those corruptions, extortions, kidnappings, criticisms and all “Honest Mistake”? Leaving behind the Christian culture, adopting the Alienate Culture, making it a custom. Here I would like to put Question Mark to all the Nagas. Do honesty need to fraud and brainwash others into their traps? Sorry for those Charismatic Nagas who stands on their faith, taking the Words of God as their creed. But your deeds will not go in vain. We the Nagas don’t have the capability to posses the name “Honest People With Integrity” until and unless we regain our sanity for money.
• Without being cynical and pessimistic, it is important to point out that Nagas are not as truthful as our elders were and we do not have the same kind of integrity they had. It does not mean, our elders were perfect, no, they were far from perfection. Similarly, it does not mean the present generation is hopeless, it just means that the modern capitalist world is catching up and Nagas are not able to safeguard our values. These values of honesty, integrity, etc are not learned in schools; they are inculcated in the homes, churches, role models etc. If today the Nagas are not as honest as before its because our homes, churches, role models, etc are failing the people.
Some of those who voted OTHERS had this to say:
• Its unfair to judge whether individuals in Naga society have become less truthful and with less integrity. So this obviously is a question that is in the grey area. But yes generally one can say that the Naga society is becoming less respectful of the values that Nagas were known to have had in the past.
• Can u claim urself as one honestly? i have heard (and read) about it from grandparents that we nagas were like that many many years ago. Maybe we are honest or full of integrity but it may be seen by others as sarcasm, stubbornness, arrogance or clever disguise..Its all due misunderstanding, suspicion, greed and lack of trust/faith among our society and family that we may have overlook those simple and good qualities and replace with those mentioned above negative qualities with our doubtful mind.
• Honesty and integrity are very relative terms. It really does not have any true meaning in the real world because it means different things for different people. For the son of the minister in Nagaland, his father would be the most loving, honest man with the highest integrity. But to someone else, the same minister maybe the most corrupt and unethical man. So everything is relative. So in a worldly sense, these are very relative terms.
• This is a question loaded with value judgment. I am sure most of the people will say that Nagas are dishonest and without integrity and may even mock the question because the answer seem so self-evident. But I think its good to have such questions thrown on your face so that people actually think and respond to it. Who can judge who is honest and dishonest. No one can judge. The oppressed will always feel that the oppressor is the corrupt and dishonest one, while the oppressor will always feel that the oppressed are people with no integrity. And believe me, Nagaland is full of them.
• Your great ME poll puts me in a state of retrospection where I cant help imagining myself posing such a question to one of my forefathers rolling in his grave by saying woe betides that present naga generation!? But with respect, granny, said I, the time have changed dramatically and the multiple challenges we face nowadays are increasingly more tougher and complicated, albeit, we at times try not to forget to practice the values that we hold dearly? Then the sweaty granny bows her head in shame saying majestically, “May God save my descendants from greed of wealth, lust for power, evil of isms hypothesis?!” My intellect persistently fails me to grasp the true meaning of uniqueness of Nagas. Do the Naga Christians all the way from bottom to top on every aspect of life really live up to its well-thought-of word coined by the Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, etc. its not that rocket science, right? All the responsible Nagas how big and small, rich and poor and whoever worth his/her salt need to seriously have a reality check first within and without as the fondly branded word of uniqueness seems to be beginning to erode its core meaning in the true sense. Yes, integrity in terms of rich diverse cultures, history, heritage and pristine beauty of nature…of nagas are there for the world to watch and study in admiration and fascination but otherwise it is like and open book where its readable contents needs no explanation. Thus, in fact like it or not, with all due respect, the upcoming generation of nagas has still found no role model to emulate in practical life in any walk of life in terms of core values, qualities, personalities from the present naga leaders. Kuknalim.
