N. Angami
Timing is everything. No one knows this better than our legislators and bureaucrats. The Spanish braved the fierce Aztecs and the wilds of South America in search of the fountain of youth. They should have come to Nagaland and joined the government service. For it is in this majestic land that a precious trade secret has been in operation ever since ‘government service’ became part of our social structure. Manipulating one’s age has been an art passed down and perfected through the generations of Naga officers. Many officers have performed mathematical feats that would have baffled Darwin and Einstien alike and have become younger than their juniors and sometimes even their own blood siblings giving the phrase ‘born again’ new meaning. So the public is now accustomed to occasions where the fellow that ragged you as a fresher in college gives a touching speech at your retirement and succeeds you, where an older brother stays on in service while the younger retires and where the beauty market is witnessing a surge in demand for anti-ageing products from women and men who are desperate to prove that they are indeed not 60 yet and will not be for the next 5 years. For a 100% Christian state that seems obsessed with ‘maintaining’ God’s Laws (think Prohibition), our officers have managed to reverse the laws of our Almighty God Himself and no one seems to be organizing a convention about it.
Timing is everything. Our ageing youth haven’t learnt this yet. And so they slept, while the Government extended the retirement age from 57 to 60 and conveniently failed to fix the length of service. And after all’s been done…The NSF awoke from their ill timed (or perfectly timed depending on which version we choose to believe) slumber and began one of the most badly timed protests. Terrible Timing. Are the folks at NSF really as educated as they make themselves out to be? We are all familiar with the usual dynamic youth leader that builds his leadership at the cost of his education. Passing is one thing, actually engaging and overcoming the rigour of your course is quite another. (Its all about how you spend your time in college). While we all sympathize with the burgeoning unemployment in our state we must also be fair enough to admit that in the Naga case, the phrase ‘EDUCATED UNEMPLOYED’ can easily be interchanged with ‘UNEDUCATED UNEMPLOYED’. A barely passed certificate with embarrassing English skills, negligible general knowledge and no work ethic is hardly bound to create any excitement among potential employers. This is also as good a time as any other to discuss the age of our NSF leaders. Many are old enough to be married (some even are). So the puzzling question remains as to why they are still in a “Student” body? Even as they fight for an appropriate age for retirement, perhaps the advisory body of the NSF should also stipulate an age of retirement for its own leaders. Perhaps if it appoints more age-appropriate leaders, the NSF will be more alert the next time round. Some rudimentary knowledge of Chess will surely teach any young man that one must anticipate his opponent’s moves and prepare accordingly in life. What was the NSF doing when the Government was implementing superannuation?
Timing is everything. God only knows where the NSF conjured up the picketing of the Secretariat or banning all government vehicles from the road on the 28th of November. The Picketing assumes that our government servants actually enjoy going for work. The common man (government servant or not) is surely aware that ‘no work, free pay’ comes very close to the Naga idea of nirvana. So it isn’t enough that government servants get three more years to plunder the public’s coffers, thanks to the NSF’s brilliant idea, they won’t even have to pretend to work for it and even manage to save a day’s worth of fuel.
Timing is everything. The NSF protest is nothing if not badly timed. The only time of the year when Nagaland is even on the periphery of the world’s vision is in December during the Hornbill Festival. For all its faults, the Government of Nagaland must be applauded for conceptualizing the Hornbill Festival. This event is not only a boon for our State’s nascent tourism business; it also serves to establish the pride of Naga culture and identity in our always struggling and insecure youth. Protests like these are bad for business. It would be severely detrimental to the future of Naga youth to drive away the little business that our old people have managed to attract to Nagaland. Our sister state Sikkim has already shown us that an entire state’s fortune can be turned around through tourism. Young and Old, the people of Nagaland should single-mindedly involve themselves in making our state as clean, friendly and attractive to tourists as possible especially in the first week of December. Is the NSF using these protests as a means to avoid working for this end?
Timing is everything. The phrase ‘ageing gracefully’ is not celebrated without reason. Let it be known that those government officers who are shamelessly and stubbornly holding on to their posts despite being overage are not fooling anyone. While your peon may conveniently fail to register the passing of yet another year, the general public will not be as kind. If it is genuinely determined to protest against superannuation, perhaps the NSF should publish the photographs of those notorious officers in the papers and in public spaces instead of targeting their cars and drivers. Banks do it to loan defaulters. And yes, that means your parents, aunt, uncle etc…we’re all related here! So at some point you have to decide whether fairness and justice is more important than blood relations (AH! That eternal Naga dilemma! ...Oh for God’s Sake! Its time to choose!)
Timing is everything. The NSF and the Naga youth are paying for their poor timing with their futures. They should learn from this mistake. It would serve posterity greatly if the NSF begins to use their time wisely. Under the RTI it is not difficult to find out how many years each officer has served in the government. Instead of disrupting public life by forcefully closing shops, picketing offices and banning government cars, genuine protestors need to hit the books. Find out which officers have served or plan to serve over 33 years or whose elder sibling is still service while the younger has retired (1 + 1 = 2). Make this public knowledge. Without waiting for the high court and all the red tape, the shame and ridicule should do enough damage and serve as a deterrent for future ‘lifelong’ government service aspirants. Desperate times call for desperate measures! Too much depends on this protest for it to fade away as it did in the 90’s. Timing is everything and the time has come for the Naga youth with or without the NSF to rise up and fight for their future intelligently.
