In a bid to address longstanding issues of corruption and ethical compromise in Nagaland’s electoral landscape, the Clean Election Movement (CEM) of the Nagaland Baptist Church Council (NBCC) has issued a resolute call for change, urging the citizens and candidates to maintain integrity and avoid corrupt practices ahead of the upcoming ULB elections scheduled for June 26.
Highlighting the pervasive misuse of resources and the prevalence of inducements during elections, CEM NBCC in a press statement pointed to past elections, including the 2023 Nagaland Legislative Assembly polls, where financial influence purportedly played a decisive role in several constituencies.
Contrasting this pattern, the CEM NBCC said the 18th Lok Sabha Elections in 2024 in Nagaland was “different from what we usually see in comparison with the other elections.” There was less use of money, no reports of violence, and other related vices usually implemented during the Lok Sabha election, it said.
However, as campaigning for the ULB elections intensify, the CEM observed that it was “similar to or grander than the State Assembly election campaigns,” where election process is one of the most easily abused instruments of political governance and management of society.
“It is enslaving, enticing, and deceitfully entertaining us to the depths of hedonistic ways. We are like leeches who come out to suck till we are full and roll away thereafter to our holes to hibernate unproductively till the next season of elections,” Dr Villo Naleo, Convenor, Clean Election Movement (NBCC) said.
The CEM NBCC stressed the urgent need for voters to prioritize integrity over fleeting incentives, urging them to scrutinize candidates beyond surface-level promises.
“If only we could act upon our conscience and vote for the most reasonable candidate, without any inducement or favour, then we would see change that builds dignity, is sustainable, and suitable,” the CEM NBCC said.
Drawing a striking analogy, the CEM NBCC likened Nagaland’s electoral challenges to cosmic black holes, consuming the light of accountability and responsible civic participation.
It called on voters to resist the temptations of bribery and superficial pledges, envisioning a future where elections serve as catalysts for genuine progress and community empowerment.
“Let us not allow the formation of socio-political-economic-moral black holes in our very young society by resolutely taking a stand; saying NO to money-power and YES to free and fair elections,” CEM NBCC stated.
As the ULB election campaigns intensify across the state, the Clean Election Movement (NBCC) urged citizens to engage in informed voting practices.
“Let us not allow the formation of socio-political-economic-moral black holes in our very young society by resolutely taking a stand; saying NO to money-power and YES to free and fair elections,” it said, urging citizens to vote for “continual improvement, vote for change that is pro-life and growth, and affordable and democratic in nature.”
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