CORRUPTION in NAGALAND: A VERY LONG ENGAGEMENT

           Why the engagement happened?

With the Naga Peace process more or last settled, the issue which needs our attention is 'corruption' in the state.  Indeed, corruption is the most evergreen topic in this state of ours. 

We all have been benefitted through corruption more or less, directly or indirectly.

THE REAL DEFINITION OF CORRUPTION

The real definition of corruption has always been vague to the people in Nagaland. The lessons and lectures on 'corruption' has never reached the Naga masses, to be precise. The concept and the approach towards it has always been in the form of a patch work. The words like favour, corruption, blessing, barter system, nepotism etc needs to be redefined. Corruption as a subject of concern pops up only during literary competitions, election manifesto or say NPSC aspirants working on their essay paper. Churches too have delivered sermons but the combined effort of Sociology and Public Administration holds its own relevance in a secular world. However, the above cited courses are not read by everyone.

Defining corruption in Naga lingo. Misnomer alert!

 (a) Wealth Accumulation- Accumulation of wealth through unethical means has often become the subject of gossip. In Nagaland, rag to riches is a wonderful success story. Acquiring wealth through one's talent, not artistic, the talent to hoard public resources. Socialism cannot always eradicate uneven wealth  distribution. 

 (b) Misuse of Office- Money is not the only indicator of corruption, misuse of one's office is also  one of the tenets of corruption. In the literal sense, misuse of one's office might mean turning the office into a spa corner or alcoholic stall. Anyway, conventionally it means, using one's position to achieve an outcome which could  not have been achieved without using the power of that 'seat'.  When was the last time we heard about it?

THE FIGHT BETWEEN NEED AND GREED  

Less is more, says the fashion trend but when more is less becomes the system's fuel, the birth of corruption seems to be inevitable. It is not surprising, the rich people who became rich from corruption tend to become even richer. They have the right contacts and the right ways to add digits to their bank balance. The irony is, 'wrong' should be the prefix.

For some, even too much is never enough. Indeed, the world is enough for man's need not for man's greed. To know the difference between need and greed is the job of an idealist, that's what it looks like. If someone wants to be rich, we see no wrong in that. However, the means adopted to become rich? Often comes under scanner only if some one is a top brass bureaucrat or else low level players are ignored. A virus is a virus irrespective of size. 

PSYCHOLOGICAL REASONS

If corruption is a crime then the person  who engages in it is a criminal and like every criminal there is a story behind the crime. Maybe that Naga government official must have had a deprived childhood, wanting lots of toys but end up with nothing, not even the used ones.

Maybe that person is blessed with a spendthrift spouse and rotten kids, maybe his/her standard of living is way beyond her/his earning and ultra extra under the table money is the most ancient and effective ways of meeting the budget? It does not mean only people who comes from economically modest background engages is corruption, refer to theme two.

Assumptions, maybe as a teen, he/she was looked down by his/her peer group and as a revenge, he/she was to be powerful and rich to show, who is the boss! However, anything in this world can be justified but all justifications are not worth justifying. 

CHRISTIAN WITHOUT ETHICAL VALUES

Ethics is a value system which helps one to live as a rational human being in a society and as a contributor of virtues, which distinguishes one from a beast.  Christianity  do have it's own set of values which contributes to the ethical code like, refraining from lying, stealing, cheating, bearing false witness, greed, killing, sexual immorality etc. We might not be in a position to make good judgment of our deeds but as a Christian we know, redemption is through confession of our sins which reflects self-correction. One might not be so bold to publicly come up with editorials confessing one's deed, however, keeping a check by being aware of one's past actions is not a bad start.

Conclusion

This post will be just another post on 'corruption'. It might catch the eyes of some local newspaper, but like any other piece, it will be forgotten in time without making significant impact, because, as we have read in the preface of this post, everyone has been benefitted from the corruption in this state, directly or indirectly.

The discussions made in this post is just a personal view. It is not sponsored by a particular individual or group, basically, it is not an advertisement. It is an attempt to question not only what we already know but also how far have we known it.

-The End-