HT Correspondent
Kohima, Feb 16: NDPP supremo Neiphiu Rio on Saturday exuded confidence that with God’s blessings and the people’s support, the NDPP-BJP Alliance would storm to power with an absolute majority and vowed to provide good, systematic and responsive governance coupled with transparency and infrastructure development – something which the NPF led DAN Government had miserably failed to provide in the last four years.
“Better changes are coming. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is a dynamic leader not only in India but in the international arena too. The Prime Minister’s development programmes will take place here in Nagaland which has been a long-felt need of the people. Unfortunately, nothing could be achieved during the last four years under chief minister TR Zeliang’s mishandling of affairs,” Rio stated while addressing rallies at 36-Satakha, 18-Chozuba, 12-Tseminyu and 9-Kohima Town assembly constituencies on Saturday.
Denouncing the NPF party’s politics of money power, the three-time former chief minister highlighted the recent media reports wherein three officials of the Chief Minister’s Office were summoned by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on extortion related charges. “This is a very serious issue. If you want to support this corrupt NPF Government, then you will only bring disrepute to yourselves,” he commented.
While appreciating the Church for voicing out its apprehensions regarding the alliance with the BJP, Rio highlighted that the NPF and BJP had been in an alliance for the last 15 years since 2003. “BJP alliance in Nagaland has been there for the last 15 years since Vajpayee’s time. As long as I was there, the Church was not afraid. But maybe some leader compromised religious platform and perhaps that may have led to the current apprehension,” Rio averred and reaffirmed that Nagas are, and will remain Christians and at the same time work consciously for the people as per the BJP led NDA Government’s development programmes. “It depends upon the individuals. Article 25 of the Constitution guarantees India to be a secular state while Article 28 guarantees freedom of religion for all and that we have nothing to fear,” he added.
Reminding that the BJP has lost confidence in the NPF party and its government’s leadership, Rio asked the people to decide whether they want to join hands with a progressive party government or reel backwards under a corruption and instability plagued government which could do nothing for the people of the State during the last four years except bring crisis after crisis.
It is due to such ineffective and visionless governance that the BJP lost confidence in the NPF leadership, Rio stated and added that the NPF party is headed for the Opposition benches. “Therefore, the choice is yours as to whether you want to send your representative to the Treasury benches or to the Opposition,” Rio said and urged upon the people not to be swayed by money power. He appealed to the people to exercise their wisdom and vote the NDPP to power so that progressive changes can be brought about in Nagaland at the earliest.
NDPP President and former minister, Chingwang Konyak who also spoke at the rallies, categorically stated that all the crises, instability, apprehensions etc existing today was due to the failed leadership of the NPF party and expressed confidence upon the undisputed leadership of Neiphiu Rio to salvage the people of Nagaland from the quagmire of the NPF’s misgovernance.
