Shillong, June 29: The Core Meeting of the Common People Front (CPF) was held on the 28/06/2016 in Shillong to study and share on the issues faced by the people of the State since inauguration of Meghalaya, more than 44 years back.
During the sharing and threadbare discussion, it is found that so far, majority of the people have been facing the brunt of neo-liberalism whereby the chasm between the haves and the have nots is growing wider, and that governance hardly touches the fringe of society but instead at the expense of the rural peasantry.
The unemployed including the educated unemployed, the unorganised sector of labour, the small and marginal farmers, single families, the homeless and landless, and other vulnerable, corporate and business community are amassing wealth including moveable and immoveable property.
Policies follow the top down or trickle down approach and state resources are drying up. During elections, people are charmed by the promise of Eldorado and shangrila without course direction and vision for the next five years since candidates and political parties do not put before the public the road map of development and for realising political, economic and social justice.
The CPF alleged that Instead money power is used to win over the gullible and muscle power to intimidate wherever there is resistance. The CPF decided that, the Core group will be prepare a road map and policy statement on the following – economic empowerment; green tapping of natural resources; sustainable development and sustainable livelihood; employment generation initiatives; engagement in the service and social sectors; protection, preservation and promotion of traditions and culture.
It felt that protection of environment and biodiversity; agriculture and horticulture improvement; industries with priority of agro based industries and related small and medium industries; revisiting existing laws like Sixth Schedule, Land, Mining and others; and other matters not spelt out here. The Policy statement and road map will be put before the public domain for suggestions, inputs i.e. including State Political Parties, Traditional Institutions, Civil Society Organisations so that the final draft will become the Peoples’ Agenda for Development (PAD).
State Political Parties will be invited for dialogue and sharing so as to bring out a mutual agenda for working and coming together – co-operation and not competition must be the spirit if their objective is to serve the people. All this is expected to be done within the next two months. Rev. Dr. P. B. M. Basaiawmoit on behalf of the Core Committee Members, Common Peoples’ Front (CPF).
