For the first time in Meghalaya, leader of Opposition uses social networking site to get the pulse of the masses
ANDREW W. LYNGDOH
Shillong, Feb 21 : The young, enterprising, net-savvy leader of Meghalaya Opposition, Conrad Sangma, has achieved a first — kicked up a raging pre-budget debate among the masses on a social networking site.
“Was preparing questions for Budget
Session...if anyone has any thoughts or issues that they would like me
to raise, please feel free to email: assemblyquestion@yahoo.com...thanks
Conrad,” — read Sangma’s Facebook “wall” last Saturday.
The budget session, to be held from March
9-23, will be the last of the current eighth Meghalaya Assembly, as the
state will be going to the polls in February-March next year.
Though the “wall post” was around the
budget, the responses that flooded Sangma’s profile revolved around the
Garo National Liberation Army (GNLA), demand for a separate statehood
for the Garos, peace, security, unemployment, influx, traffic
congestion, the public distribution system, National Rural Employment
Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) and illegal mining of minerals.
“What are the government’s plans to
suppress the GNLA which is a terrorist organisation engaged in extortion
from coal traders, petrol pump owners and local businessmen?” asked one
netizen, a question he wanted Sangma to ask the treasury bench during
the budget.
On the much-debated bifurcation of
Meghalaya, one asked: “Why don’t you raise the question for the separate
state for the Garo people?”
Yet another wrote: “In this way, every
state shall start demanding their own share of land and this is not the
solution to tackle problems which are intentionally created by
neighbouring countries.”
Apart from the GNLA and statehood issues, Sangma has also been tapped on the prickly issue of influx.
“Seriously, we should tackle influx. I’ve
seen that the business in Tura and Shillong has been taken over by
others. We have seen how our own people are pushed to the road side,” a
netizen observed.
“The government should do something about
the immigrants from Bangladesh...they are taking our business, our
place...if this continues, there will be no place for our children in
the future,” another Facebook member said.
On unemployment, a netizen said, “Why
don’t you raise the problem of unemployment in Meghalaya? It is the
future problem of militancy.”
“Youths are flying abroad. Hence, manpower
of the state is fading because of partiality, corruption. So, the
government should focus on fair employment...” another Facebook member
said.