Some of those who voted yes had this to say:
• Yes, Nagas are beggars. It may not be about begging on the street, but we have become so dependent on others that we are constantly begging others. No wonder Nagas have become so corrupted and our towns into a free fire zone.
• Not beggars on the streets, but beggars becos we dont work to earn but want fast and easy money. What better than, extorting and kidnapping? Even if they dont have even one bullet in their revolver, they have the nerve to abduct people to pay ransoms.
• The one reason, Nagas have been dependent is we are all selfish. Everyone thinks of himself only. When funds are given by centre, people dont take it as public money. They use the money as if its theirs. In a long run we have been dependent on these supplies of funds for survival.
• It’s the same thing as begging, but we are doing it with guns and threats
• Yes, with an AK-47 bowl
• Spirit of entrepreneurship killed by government subsidies, dependence on government for employment, lack of ownership in one's own community development.
• Yes, just look at the staggering numbers of unemployment. Most of the presently employed people are all in government services. The fact that there is a very small private sector in Nagaland means, Nagas are heavily dependent on the government. So yes from this point of view we are nothing short of beggars. Unless ideas of self-employment grows, we will keep begging.
• Indians think we are good beggars. We think we are fooling India with the amount of Schemes and funds they provide annually. They are doing this just to keep our mouths shut about the freedom thing.
• Nagas should learn to become timid and humble. Why do we see our naga brothers boasting around esp. with the non-locals. We should be thankful they are there. Otherwise we would have been in the streets sweating out for petty jobs. Who else is manning ur paddy field?
• In a literal sense, Yes. We may not be out in the roads begging with our bowls, but Nagas by large are constantly seeking shortcuts in life. We want the best out of life without giving anything in return. We dont even work hard, but we want the best out of life. No wonder so many of us are resorting to begging as a way out of hard word and also finding ways to an easy road. Our minds definitely begging, even if our bodies are not.
• I see that Nagas are beggars in every way. The Govt biggies go to Delhi and beg 4 funds. The undergrounds figure out the begging system by their gun power. Everybody is after begging in some way or other.
• Its the undergrounds that have made a begging a trade to survive. Just ask any business set up when these thugs havent begged for donations.
• From top to bottom, we are beggars.
• Begging on the streets and begging with unfolded hands are different. Our Naga comrades have been begging since long just to meet their ends. God forbid! Nagas will land up in the streets of Assam, Delhi, Mumbai.
• The best beggars we will ever see. These days the beggars come in SUV's and Scorpios to literally beg the business community for their own survival.
• Nagas are all beggars with huge mansions, cars and fancy Scorpios and Boleros..All they do is imitate undergrounds and screw around the town asking their share of taxes. What shameless creatures are we becoming?
• Right from the CM level to a mere man on the streets, We are dependent on Indians. We need them for money, food, salt, clothes, and everything there is. So literally we are all beggars.
• Government and politicians are solely responsible! Like it or not accept it! Past governments and politicians were no better and now worst. IS THERE ANY WAY OUT?
• Beggari ho chuka hai. Aur bi honahe he kuinki Naga aadmi lok ko kaam atanehi hai. Serf betho aur khao.
• Agreed. So many official beggars wanting to lead a luxurious and comfortable life and not using the God given hands, legs and brains to work and earn.
Some of those who voted no had this to say:
• We are only demanding for what is rightfully ours
• I dont agree that Nagaland has been reduced to a land of beggars. There is no doubt that the state of affairs is of much concern and the practices of corruption and other malpractices has reached the pinnacle. However this is mostly found only in towns like Kohima and Dimapur and some other growing towns like Mokokchung. But away from these towns, for most parts the Naga villagers are not only self-sufficient but are also pure in heart. They are simple people who still hold on to honesty and integrity. Whereas in urban Nagaland, these practices of honesty is no longer found and so they are the ones who have been reduced to begging. But rural Nagaland, and most of Nagaland is rural, the people can still hold their heads high and be proud that they are self-sufficient as well as honest in making their livelihood.
• No, since Nagas love to live in dignity and respect and does not go for begging
• I dont think it can be said that Nagaland has become a land of beggars. There is no doubt that Nagas are so very dependent on the government even for our most basic of requirements. But this is all a forced situation. This is all being done in duress. If we are to remove this situation of duress, than I dont think we will be given the chance to say that Nagaland has become a land of beggars. The begging right now, whether in the streets on in the power corridors of Kohima and New Delhi is humiliating but that is a reality we cannot avoid for now. But still then, the majority of the people in the villagers are hard working and have really worked hard for their livelihood. Its those people in cities and towns who have become lazy and through corrupted means trying to find a shortcut to money.
Some of those who voted others had this to say:
• Nagaland is like a communist state, where the only source of employment is the government and its machineries. There is no private enterprise at all. So when the government control all employment and source of livelihood, the people have no choice but to beg and become beggars – not in the streets, but in the corridors of government offices.
• There are scarcely any differences between the consumer’s society and the beggar’s one. Dependency mentality, unhealthy work ethic, bereft of the dignity of labor, perennial insurgency problem, deeply ingrained corruption etc are the roots cause of woes and impediments seriously hampering all round progress and holistic development in the state in spite of blessing it with adequate human and natural resources and favorable climatic conditions and besides billions and billions of rupees are pumping into the state through huge monetary assistance and developmental aids, countless welfare schemes. You name it. Enough is enough, its high time to reverse this sad on-going trend before it has become irreversible. Now is the time for a really true change and the change will come not from without but from within starting all the way from you and me as there goes an old saying “charity begins at home.”
• This is a thought provoking question. The way I see it, it is not about a beggar, literally, it is more about how Nagas are begging for everything and in the process selling ourselves in a very cheap manner. Yes, Nagas we have lost our dignity and integrity, we have become very cheap by selling ourselves.
• I think about than beggars, the root cause if laziness. I think Nagaland is a land of lazy bones. People are just not prepared to work hard and earn an honest living the difficult way. Since the creation of Nagaland state in 1963, the people have become too dependent on the government for everything. This is the genesis of bankruptcy and laziness. Now, no one is willing to work unless it is a government job, and it is not possible for every Naga to be employed in the government. If only Nagas will realize that for Nagaland to develop it needs the private sector to be very active and booming.
