Shillong, Apr 7: The National People’s Party (NPP) national president and Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma said that in the past Delhi would ignore the MPs from the Northeast if they raised their concern, but the scenario is slowly changing as the leaders of the region have been able to unitedly stand for the cause of the people.
“We should take conscious political decisions, choose leaders who can articulate our aspirations and our voice,” he said while delivering his addresses while campaigning for the NPP candidates in Arunachal Pradesh.
Sangma wrapped up his three-day campaign tour to Arunachal Pradesh on Saturday.
Reminding the gathering of (L) Purno Agitok Sangma’s vision for Northeast and its people, he said, “His ideals (Purno) were simple; he wanted that the diverse communities of the region should come together to make their voice heard, loud and clear in Delhi. Our communities have no political unity, and hence Purno floated the NPP to be a united forum to voice the concerns of our people.”
“In a democracy, the number is important, and if we want to make Delhi take us seriously, we have to empower our own home-grown party so that we are taken seriously, and our concerns are addressed,” he added.
During his campaign tour, he visited Longding, Leparada, and Dumporjio in Arunachal Pradesh. He was accompanied by his spouse and National Treasurer Dr. Mehtab Agitok Sangma and National General Secretary i/c organization James K. Sangma.
Speaking at different campaign meetings, Chief Minister Conrad Sangma said that NPP may be a partner of the NDA coalition but when it comes to the issue of the people of the Northeast and the indigenous communities, NPP will always be the first to stand up for the rights of the people.
“We will work with NDA; we have an alliance, but whenever we have to fight for the cause of Northeast, or Arunachal Pradesh or Meghalaya, we will stand up for our people. I assure you that we will always stand up and fight for our people,” he said.
“NPP believes in the interest of our people, and whatever decision we take, we will keep our people and our country first,” he said, while adding, “people have given their mandate to us, and we cannot break the trust of our people. We shall work with passion and full commitment to further the interest of our people.”
Talking about the development and economic growth of Arunachal Pradesh, he said, “We need good people on our team with experience and vision, and let me admit that NPP has many retired administrative officers and government servants who have joined us to work as a team to further the development and growth of our region.”
Seeking the mandate of the people for 22 candidates, who are fielded in the State of Arunachal for the ensuing Assembly election, he said, “We need the right candidates to voice and articulate our concerns, and NPP has carefully chosen candidates who can truly represent the voice of the people of Arunachal Pradesh.”
Talking about Meghalaya’s growth model, he said, “In my State, we have initiated programs for the farmers, women, and the youth. We have streamlined interventions that directly and indirectly will upscale the socio-economic condition of our people. Our entrepreneurship programs have won accolades from the Government of India and international agencies for the best Start-Up ecosystem. We believe that our candidates, when elected, will take a cue from our model and replicate the same in Arunachal Pradesh.”