Year Ender Satire
Who is Newsmaker 2024 ?
BJP MP Phangnon Konyak, CM Rio or a 'faceless' letter writing pal?
New Delhi
"Goodbye 2024 and anything called Past.....,
This is neither a satire nor a fictional tale; yet it's both.
Before I could share my Doubts in the form of a question as an old school inquisitive journo, I ought to refer to what my friend says -
"Actually there is a lot to learn from Americans....Their experience and where they have landed. After swinging to the political right for decades ... Are Americans swinging towards the Left ? And still they elected Donald Trump who is sending back 18,000 Indians".
This friend of mine is a Naga. His first name could start with G, H, K ... anything. His surname is kept withheld as that was the sole pre-condition.
He has never been a faultless fellow as his reputation with me stood.
Of course, among all the traits, he is a candid talker.
To my question about his expectations from the year 2025 -- he said, "I am one of those few blessed individuals who has more than 20 Prime Ministers including one Chief Minister and one Pradhan Mantri in Delhi .... and yet I am hardly happy. As the year goes by, I feel like saying 'Goodbye gentleman, good riddance' too".
I asked him - why so much "pessimism".
He responded: "Well, we have more than 20 Prime Ministers - most of them being Ato Kilonsers....(from different Naga militant groups) and on top of that, there is a Chief Minister at Kohima and yet another 'Gujarati Pradhan Mantri' in Delhi".
He could be displeased due to the "luxury of taxes" he has to cough out.
Then, there is GST from Delhi too.
Phangnon Konyak : Lawmaker taking on Mighty Rahul Gandhi
"I will write a common open letter to all my Prime Ministers and Ato Kilonsers...", he says.
Just as he left me wondering if this 'faceless' man should be my Newsmaker of the year 2024; we heard about S Phagnon Konyak, who has taken on mighty Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.
The Rajya Sabha MP is also the second Naga woman parliamentarian after Rano Shaiza. The answers to multiple questions on the Phangnon-Rahul episode remain in the womb of time.
Another man gives a competition for the prize. NPF veteran Chubatemjen Ao has called
Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio - the 'Horn' of Nagaland.
Rio also deserves to be our Newsmaker. In 2023,he returned to power. By Sept 12th, 2024 - he discovered a creative sense and pushed for a new interlocutor to resolve the Naga issue.
By Nov 22-23, there was a grand snub from Delhi's 'mota-bhai Amit Shah'. No offence meant - Mota Bhai in Gujarati means elder brother.
Rio : Suited but 'traditional'
To name a Newsmaker may not be an easy job.
In film 'Doubt' Meryl Streep says so candidly - Every easy choice today will have its consequences tomorrow.
In Nagaland today, the biggest challenge is -- Life is like a ticking clock -- slower than time.
We keep hearing phrases -- journey in uncharted waters, this suggestion is Utopian and in a veil of democracy. We try to understand these according to our own requirements.
I am cautious. About 2025, I am not sure of anything. In fact, let us be guided by Franz Kafka's counseling -- “It’s only because of their stupidity that they’re able to be so sure of themselves".
Let us not be stupid.
Youngsters are a generation of empowered individuals. Where is your progressive agenda ?
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
ends
 |
| Blogger and an Angami Naga friend : Grounded ! |
No comments:
Post a Comment