Chizokho Vero
Kohima | April 18
Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio in his address today urged upon fellow legislators to continue to persevere in “our efforts to be more useful to our people and to the hallowed institution of democracy as a whole.” He was speaking during the orientation programme for legislators at Kohima.
Stating that the government still has to play a leading role in planning developmental priorities, and directing the flow of resources in favour of the poor and the unprivileged, Rio said “Therefore, at all times, good and well informed legislators will always be a boon for the society. Competent legislators are not born, but made and they can be made only through continuous orientation, training and education.”
Rio stated that like everybody else in any profession the legislators require some sort of training and reorientation, to enable them to carry out their duties and responsibilities more effectively.
“This orientation programme is a small step on our effort to improve our legislator’s role towards strengthening of parliamentary democracy,” he said.
Saying that one important area deserving attention was development of “effective communication,” he maintained that unless a legislator is able to effectively communicate in the House and in the various House Committees, he would not be effectively representing his constituency.
Also stating that undertaking of the budget was another area of concern, Rio said a large number of legislators only give a cursory look at the budget documents during the budget session, and stacked them away in one corner for the rest of the year.
To enable members to understand the budgetary concepts easily, the ParliamentaryAffairs Department has circulated a document called ‘Making sense of the Budget.’
Rio advised members to read books on economics, planning and other related subjects so that they can effectively contribute to debates on the budget. Rio also stressed on the need to develop a consensual approach in the House. This can be done by recognizing and accepting our differences, he said.
We must learn how to build consensus in a multi party democracy, he continued and pointed out that the proud tradition of the NLA of normally resorting to “voice vote” instead of “recorded vote.”
Morung Express News
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