Members of the Rising People’s Party during the press conference in Dimapur on July 3.
Rising People’s Party promises good governance, contesting sans money power
Morung Express News
Dimapur | July 3
Nagaland’s newest political party— Rising People’s Party (RPP) sounded the electoral bugle today promising an alternative to an existing “rot in the system” and rebuilding a new Nagaland.
“We have a dream; we have a vision for the Naga people. We want to bring in real change. It is not rhetoric, it is an ideal which we have prepared to sacrifice for,” declared RPP president and anti-corruption activist, Joel Naga on Saturday at a press conference in Dimapur.
According to Joel, the RPP vision coincides with Gandhian self-reliance, sacrifice and non-violence— a vision that would replace a failed system helmed by below par political parties.
Stating that the present system and political parties have failed the people, he said that the RPP provides an alternative for the emergence of a new social order, based on justice and equality, and governance that would not confine itself to disbursing monthly salary alone.
He outlined four core principles of the party– good governance, women and youth empowerment, upholding rule of law, creation of a self reliant economy, besides being accountable and transparent.
“If we concentrate on these things I am sure we can rebuild a new Nagaland,” he said, asserting that women should be in the Assembly taking part in the decision making process.
Vice president Abeny Khuvung, commenting on the prospect of women in decision-making roles, said that there are enough women leveling up and challenging the status quo. The public, she said, should start believing in the capability of women and not just in the perceived feminine role of women.
Ridding the electoral system of money and muscle power, while bringing about an “electoral revolution” was another professed agenda of the party. In this direction, Joel informed that the party members have declared their assets, which will be made public soon.
“We want to bring back morality and decency into politics… It is about giving good governance to the people and we intend to do that. At the end of the day, we leave it to the people to reject us or to accept us.”
The party’s Treasurer Vitho Zao summed it up this way, “There are already other political parties but people have no option, so, we are creating an option. We want to create a movement so that we wake up from slumber and decide for ourselves.”
According to Zao, electoral contenders in Nagaland spend hundreds of crores of rupees, which they will try to reclaim during their tenure. The RPP’s objective is to contest elections without buying votes and if elected, the priority would be to serve with transparency and accountability, he said.
Queried on the party’s stand on the Indo-Naga issue, Joel said that the RPP commenting on it would be irrelevant given a perceived unimportance accorded to the state government and political parties by the parties involved. However, as Nagas, “We feel that the peace talks should be expedited and it should come to a conclusion.”
As far as taxation by Naga Political Groups was concerned, Joel said that the prerogative lies with the state government “because they are the ones running the government.”
On electoral prospect, he said that the party is targeting the 2023 state Assembly elections. “We are sowing a seed and just like a seed it takes time to grow. Only time will tell how many members or how many candidates will be in the Assembly.”
