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Static Congress
(November 1)
It is not surprising that the Congress which had been in limbo for the last couple of years should suddenly now find itself sailing in smoother water thanks to the favorable wind blowing in its direction. This has nothing to do with any radical changes in the political outlook and ideology of the Congress but has more to do with developments within the other political parties.
The regional parties -MSCP, MPP and FPM-which had captured the imagination of the people not so long back are now a divided lot, inflicted by infighting and failed to live up to people's expectation when it mattered most. It is the same story with, two other National parties, which promised much but failed to deliver the goods.
The BJP and the Samata Party, the latter even occupied the seat of power for a few months, failed to capitalize on its Delhi connections and the bitter stand off between the two resulted in the present President's Rule.
The Congress which steered the destiny of the State for the greater period of time ever since Manipur attained Statehood in 1972 was suddenly pushed to the background after the vertical split in 1997 and the MSCP came to power under the stewardship of W Nipamacha. Since then the role of the Congress had been reduced to a mere spectator and one lone Congress man, Rishang Keishing occupied the Opposition bench with aplomb during the Samata led
Ministry under Radbabinod Koijam.
The equation since then appears to have changed. All the other political parties, save for the CPI and CPI (M), have undergone drastic changes. The FPM which was desperately gasping for a breath of fresh air now have Dr Chandramani as president and the MSCP which saw acrimonious brick batting between Th Chaoba and W Nipamacha is no longer the force it once was. The BJP and the Samata appear lost at the moment with many of its members switching sides to other 'greener pastures.'
In such a scenario it was not at all surprising that MPCC (1) president O Ibobi went on to state that the Congress would garner absolute majority in the next, assembly elections. To support his claim, Ibobi did not come out with any elaborate agendum of the Congress for governance but rather zeroed in on the admission of 30 well known political figures to his party.
This precisely demonstrates that the Congress is still refusing to learn from its past mistakes. That the Congress was done in by party hoppers, opportunists and the rot within seem to have blown over the head of the party leadership. The seven former Ministers inducted into the party's fold are known more for their inclination to change their political color at the drop of the hat rather than any substantial contribution towards governance.
In short the Congress is still the same old party and unless the leadership comes out with something concrete for the people the tall claim that the Congress would provide a clean and stable Government will not cut any ice with the discerning public. For a party, which has been at the forefront of the country through the ages, something more concrete is expected rather than admitting some old - faces who are known political chameleon.
O Ibobi and the venerable Rishang Keishing should realize that for the Congress to make a grand comeback and recapture its golden days, what is needed is not admitting some former Ministers but a thorough shake up of the party from within. Unfortunately the Congress appears reluctant to toe this line.
(Courtesy:
The Sangai Express)
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