Dimapur, June 28 (MExN): The Nagaland Congress today highlighted issues of corruption in the recent times that the NPF-led Democratic Alliance of Nagaland continues to be uncomfortable with. The District Congress Committee of Kohima today mentioned the Sugar Mill and Transport Subsidy scams, ‘PWD road scams’, scams in the Education department, and corruption in the implementation of NREGA as well as in the NPSC involving government leaders and underground functionaries. The Congress said even parliamentary secretaries of Rural Development and of Industries are now on ‘busy buying spree’ from ill-gotten money.
Elsewhere in the country government leaders offer to or step down when helicopters crash or trains are derailed, but in Nagaland the Naga government leaders have no such principle inclination, the Congress smirked.
“When DAN government took the reign of power in Nagaland they made lofty promises to dispense justice, transparency, accountability and corrupt free Government to the public. But after years of their rule the DAN government turned topsy-turvy. Belying its commitment, the DAN Government is heavily dogged with rampant corruption, mismanagement of the state affairs and abuse of power,” stated a note from DCC president Prasielie Pienyu.
The Congress referred to the Sugar Mill and Transport Subsidy scandals involving crores meant for sugar mill employees and industrial firms belonging to Naga entrepreneurs. They funds have been misused by Khekiho, the DCC stated. “However, for reason best known to the chief minister, he not only stalled CBI investigation but handsomely rewarded Khekiho two times to represent Nagaland as Rajya Sabha M.P in Delhi,” the DCC spat.
The same with the PWD road scams involving politicians, bureaucrats and technocrats. Investigation remains dormant, the Congress said. Also, DAN’s slogan of bringing quality Education crash landed with the emergence of massive corruptions under SSA and the infamous ‘bogus teachers scam’, the Congress said. “DAN Government couldn’t do anything as it involved three consecutive Education Ministers from 2003 to 2010, Departments officers and staff, anti-social elements. Truth will come to light only if the three tainted Ministers are removed by the Chief Minister but he is not determined to remove his comrade-in-arms.”
Also, in the coal scam, the Congress said “a senior bureaucrat attached to the chief minister then and top brass underground element were implicated by the CBI. Despite his proximity to this scam, the chief minister shouted at the top of his voice in the Assembly session last year that the DAN government would file defamation case against Punjab Legislative Assembly Deputy Speaker but the issue sinks into oblivion and the implicated persons are on the prowl again.”
The Congress also reiterated that corruption permeates the implementation of the now-tainted rural employment scheme the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme: “Of all the corruption scandals in Nagaland, as of now, broad day-light exhaustion of NREGS fund is the biggest corruption scandal. The massive funds amounting to Rs. 700 crores being sanctioned for the villagers to alleviate their pathetic economic status have been siphoned off without showing any remorse by the DAN politicians, RD authorities and many village leaders who are handling NREGS funds.”
In filling their coffers, the Congress said “the RD Parliamentary Secretary and some RD officers are on the buying spree, busy purchasing immovable properties worth lakhs and crores, particularly in Dimapur, Kohima and even Delhi.”
The ill-gotten money, the DCC said, is managed and squandered in such a casual manner that NREGS fund belonging to villagers of Mon district was detected by the Assam police in Bokajan. “Though the RD department touted surreptitious cash as IAY (CGI sheet) payment to avoid backlash the inevitable and unavoidable truth is that it is NREGS fund sanctioned to Mon district by Delhi for the poor villagers. The DAN Government cannot hide this misdeed.”
Further the parliamentary secretary in-charge of Industries had used cash amounting to lakhs to purchase officers posts for his children ‘popularly known as the NPSC scam,’ the DCC said. “Though the Modus Operandi has been surfaced and the parliamentary secretary was implicated to the bottom, the chief minister was unperturbed and the tainted VIP was not dropped though it was the popular desire of the Naga people that such corrupt public leader must quit or removed immediately.”
“Perhaps this inaction of the Chief Minister might have embolden the infamous Parliamentary secretary and his family to behave as if the whole world belongs to them. As if in the character of a western cow boy, for the second time, the same Parliamentary secretary’s son, carrying lethal rifle, threatened Angami Youth Organizations official in M/s SKV petrol pump, Kohima town fuming communal tone which is detrimental to the well being of the pluralistic Naga society.”
Elsewhere in the country, ministers offer to quit on issue of “Aeroplane crash due to technical snag/pilot errors and blasting of train by the Maoists,” the DCC explained. “But Nagaland seems to be another weird world where the chief minister, ministers and parliamentary secretaries refused to quit though crimes and corruptions of various forms directly relates to them,” the DCC added.
