Imkong Walling
Recently, Chief Minister, Neiphiu Rio, went on record declaring that it is unfair to always put the blame on the government. Rio made the comment in response to a media query on the alleged nexus between the government and fuel adulteration in Nagaland on the sideline of a public function on April 23.
Not prone to display emotion in public, he said, “The government cannot watch everybody’s kitchen,” in his trademark, deadpan demeanour. The implied message was that the administrative machinery cannot micromanage all affairs and the public should be equally responsible as well. In other words, the people are as much expected to be sensitive to matters detrimental to the greater public interest in the form of “filing complaints” for the enforcement agencies to act.
The CM’s stand, while disheartening, was not surprising. It was a manifestation of a trend, a tendency of passing culpability that permeates the love-hate relationship between policy-makers and the citizenry in Nagaland. This, however, is where the problem rests, neither entity wanting to get out of the comfort zone— not wanting to risk breaking the status quo.
The propensity to act unconcerned takes myriad forms. It manifests in the fuel adulteration saga, a matter of great economic implication, but one where criminal financial interests outweighs the greater public good. Six years since the revelation came to the limelight, it remains circumstantial at best, unable to find closure. Lack of suitable evidence, of the kind that can be proven beyond reasonable doubt in a court of law, ensures that the case drags on.
It was assumed the criminal trade may have taken a beating since then but it reappeared recently, only to be forgotten like its predecessor.
Meanwhile, subsidised PDS kerosene continues to be diverted, to the open market to be sold at inflated rates and to criminal enterprises specialising in blending it with vehicle fuel, which eventually finds its way to retail outlets.
The government may deny and act dismissive but it is happening and it is not hard to assume why. Big money is involved, which greases palms and keeps mouths shut, not only of the elected kind but also of the parallel kind. It is evidence of a well organised network that can only be run unhindered under patronage.
It manifests in the form of enforcement agencies displaying reluctance to act despite getting information as in the recent case. It manifests in the form of the CM taking a defensive stand and passing the buck to the public. It manifests in the form of a populace that chooses to remain silent even when it is apparent they who are feeling the pinch, reinforcing the notion of pervasive apathy.
The writer is a Principal Correspondent at The Morung Express. Comments can be sent to imkongwalls@gmail.com
