NSA Advisor and Nagaland Education Association (NEA) President Dr Zavise Rume said on Saturday that an opposition bench is required for a democratic government to represent the voice of the unrepresented people and additionally ‘a strong opposition to strengthen the government.’
Dr Rume asserted during a panel discussion on ‘Opposition Less Government in a Democracy: Trends and Challenges’ organised by the Naga Scholars Association (NSA), Kohima regional unit held at Kohima College, Kohima.
Download Nagaland Tribune app on Google Play
Mentioning that opposition-less government was installed by our own leaders elected by our own people which was the ultimate outcome of the verdict and mandate given by the people, Rume opined that during election campaigns, all contesting candidates should seek verdict of the people and allow people to make an informed choice of their leaders best out of best.
“The primary objective of the general election is to seek the general people’s verdict to form their own people’s democratic government to manage the affairs of the state,” he said.
Rume asserted that the power of a government comes from the people and not from the people’s representatives and therefore, people must own it.
He however added that on the other hand, it is also true that no government truly or wholly represents the whole opinions of the people.
Therefore, an opposition bench is required to represent the voice of the unrepresented people and additionally ‘a strong opposition to strengthen the government.’
Stating that Nagas practised purest form of democracy and republic government on the principle that the people’s voice is supreme, he therefore said such ingenious practice should be respected.
“Purest republic was practised in Naga polity because all the laws and policy decisions were made by people themselves,” the advisor said.
In this regard, he said that the supreme purpose of village-state is the realization of the highest good for the people.
Referring to Naga society, Rume mentioned that “there was no party system in our Naga traditional political system similar to what we are promoting today the system of opposition-less government, with the primary objective to secure a complete unity in the society and the highest happiness which is the ultimate goal of politics.”
However, he pointed out that “modern politics emerged with party politics has destroyed many cultural and political values.”
He said that traditionally, Naga society was a classless society which inevitably paved the way for the disappearance of the state. Class, caste or party system were alien to the Naga society, he added.
Nagas practised direct democracy in which the will of the village is expressed directly or immediately through the people in mass meetings or primary assembly, rather than through the medium of delegates or representatives chosen to act for them, the panelist added.
In the discussion, Dr Tovika Swu, Head of Department, Political Science, Don Bosco College Kohima pointed that opposition less government is a big challenge and a threat. Mentioning that political ideology is dying all over the world, he said that it is the responsibility of scholars to educate people on political ideology.
David Sachü, Assistant Professor, Department of Political Science, Sazolie College, Jotsoma stressed on the Nagaland’s perspective of opposition-less government. He spoke about the democratic principles, political talent and factors behind the opposition-less government in our state. He said Naga political parties has one ideology from the very beginning, that is to bring solution to the Indo-Naga issue. He also mentioned we live in a system controlled by money power and need structural change.
Dr Khriezo Yhome, Senior Fellow, Asian Confluence, Shillong, Meghalaya spoke on what made Nagaland choose, the trends of opposition-less government around the world and lack of ideology in politics.
