While appreciating your endeavor to give all round coverage to the people of Nagaland I wish your teams all the best in the days to come in your service to the people.
Apropos to your news items under caption “ONGC – Lotha Hoho oil talks ends in dead lock” dated 6/12/2006 Where it was mentioned that “Lotha Hoho Nyambemo Ngullie, told The Morung Express after the meeting with ONGC today that they are not against ONGC...” Here I want to remind Lotha Hoho and State govt. that I was one of the Volunteer of NSF during 93-94 agitation where the exploitation of ONGC in the name of exploration was carried out for so many years whereby depriving the people and their resources for which the NSF stopped the exploration with three principles.” Unless it is “Acceptable, Honourable and Beneficial” to the Naga people, the exploration will not be allowed in Nagaland. Also in the subsequent serious of discussion with the reports of NSF committee on natural resources headed by people like Dr. Lanu, TS. Lotha, Imcha Longkumer, Atong and Elias Lotha, with different NSF Tribal Units and Naga Hoho It was decided that ONGC will not be allowed to explore and the same modalities if arrived with other agency will be applicable to all Naga areas wherever, natural resources like oil are available.
Here I would like to request the leaders of Lotha Hoho that, while negotiating for the benefit of all people concern they should also take into confidence the wisdom of NSF and Naga Hoho as they were spear-heading the stopping of exploitation by ONGC. Also the same yard stick should be applied to all Naga areas since oil is not only available in Lotha areas.
Also the people of Nagaland and the state government should not only focus on rate of royalty alone but also give focus for a long term policy that will benefit its people. While ONGC have been monopolising and exploiting with the sentiment of the people as there were no other competitor in those day, and since License was only given to ONGC and OIL India. Now It seems like they are back after a gap of 12 years, when many other agency are successful in exploration in other North East state, they seems to come back thinking that the people have forgotten their past deed.
Therefore, this is a sincere appeal to all Lotha Hoho leaders in particular and Naga in general, let not the blood and tears of Naga students and youth of 1993 to1994 go in waste with the bargaining of royalty alone but take a clear cut consensus decision that will benefit, be honourable and acceptable for the generation to come not the Indian agency coming in the guise of ONGC to exploit my Nagaland.
Abemo Lotha
Chandmari, Kohima
