Government appeal rejected by Naga body once again, poll boycott continues

KOHIMA: The Eastern Nagaland People's Organization (ENPO) on Friday rejected the Nagaland government’s appeal and remained firm on abstaining from participating in the Urban Local Bodies (ULB) elections, scheduled on June 26.

ENPO Secretary W. Manwang Konyak said that they did not receive any written appeal and only saw in the media that the state government has made an appeal not to boycott the ULB polls.

“We have to go by the decision of our grassroots level people and organization. We would abstain from participating in the ULB polls,” Konyak told IANS.

After a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio, the Nagaland government on Thursday urged the ENPO not to boycott the vital ULB polls.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister K.G. Kenye, who is the spokesman of the state government said that the government has appealed to ENPO and its constituent bodies to participate in the ULB elections, which are being conducted on the directions of the Supreme Court.

The ULB election is for empowering local self-governance and facilitating development and uplift of the citizens at the grassroots, he said. He further stressed that ULB elections should not be seen as a means for ENPO to register resentment and protest for their demands on Frontier Nagaland Territory.

“Through many letters to MHA and mass rallies, we tried to persuade the Central government to resolve our demand but it turned a deaf ear,” the Naga leader said.

The ENPO Secretary told that they have already informed the State Election Commission (SEC) that the people of these six districts viz. Chang, Khiamniungan, Konyak, Phom, Tikhir, Sangtam, and Yimkhiung, would abstain from voting in the ULB polls, covering three Municipal Councils and 36 Town Councils.

Konyak said that, on March 19, the ENPO had adopted a unanimous resolution that the people of the region would not participate in any central and state elections due to the delay in creating the ‘Frontier Nagaland Territory (FNT)’ as offered and assured by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on December 7, 2023. (IANS)

Also Read: ENPO to abstain from Nagaland urban local bodies’ elections too (sentinelassam.com)

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