The 2010 FIFA World Cup at South Africa draws to a close this early morning with eager anticipation for the finals between Spain and the Netherlands. People in Nagaland would have stayed awake to catch all the live action of this beautiful game. Nothing beats the FIFA World Cup in terms of its popularity and sheer excitement it provides to the global audience. While the event in South Africa ends, there is equal anticipation on the return of the Nagaland Chief Minister and his Cabinet colleagues. After all it is not a good thing to stay away for too long and especially when half of your Ministry is away watching the spectacle in sunny South Africa. There is important government work to attend to. The State Budget has yet to be passed. And with the head of the government away on holiday, it’s a long summer break indeed. Not surprisingly questions have been raised about the visit of such a large ministerial team and the timing of it when the State is reeling under a financial crisis. Even if countless number of justifications is given in support of such a visit, what the public make out is as important. An overwhelming number of sensible people will argue that one can ill afford to waste so much when the State’s coffer is running on empty. One of the strong arguments put forward is that the particular visit to South Africa is a private one and there is no question of involvement of public money. But then the CM and his Cabinet colleagues are holding public office and to say that their visit is privately funded does not hold water. The contentions would not have arisen if the visit had been undertaken in a more transparent manner with sincerity and honesty. After all there is nothing wrong for an official delegation from Nagaland to go and watch the FIFA world cup. A smaller delegation along with honesty of our politicians would have been more appreciated.
To recall, during the last FIFA World Cup in Berlin, Germany, a similar delegation comprising of politicians and bureaucrats had gone. The Naga Students Federation (NSF) at that time had publicly disapproved of such a visit raising concern over the misuse of power and privilege by the government. This time the NSF has chosen to remain silent for whatever reasons. While foreign trips by fact-finding and technical delegations are justified to some extent, a paid holiday package at a time when there is not even sufficient fund to pay for government programmes is a bit unfair to the public. As of now the Nagaland government is not in a position to pay even its share of 10% for development works. Therefore, isn’t a ten-man holiday-package for ten-days a way bit expensive for our Ministers to indulge in at a time when things are tight at home? Clearly, the government will have to answer whether such splurge on foreign jaunts contradicts with its own commitment towards a sound expenditure management policy. As a State that is economically weak in terms of generating its own source of income we can ill afford to be wasteful. Every rupee saved, counts for poor Nagaland whether you are spending from your own pocket or the government’s.
