Shillong, Sep 19:The Meghalaya Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) has come down heavily on the recent cabinet reshuffle, describing it as “anti-merit” and “detrimental to governance.”
MPCC secretary Manuel Badwar, in a sharp critique, said the reshuffle of key portfolios such as health, tourism and power had nothing to do with performance and everything to do with political pressure.
“There’s no merit in it. Even good performance is not being rewarded, but rather penalised,” Badwar said, stressing that governance should function on a proper appraisal system where ministers are judged and rewarded on their performance.
He argued that policy-making requires continuity and ministers need at least five years in a department to bring about meaningful change. “Two and a half years is too short. Policy-making is slow and requires time to mature. Instead of rewarding good work with continuity, this government has chosen to reshuffle for reasons that don’t benefit the people,” he said.
Badwar further accused the coalition of succumbing to external pressures. “It looks as if this government is moving towards a system where only a few – what we call crony capitalists – will benefit. The public at large, 80 to 90 percent of the population, will not gain anything,” he claimed.
Warning of growing economic inequality, he said such decisions will widen the gap between the rich and poor, impacting livelihoods, education, health and even the social fabric of the state. “When economics is at stake, everything else – culture, education, health – collapses. Families will be pushed into desperation, often turning to illegal means for survival. This vicious cycle will harm society as a whole,” Badwar cautioned.
Badwar called on the people of Meghalaya to be more vigilant and vocal. “We need to raise our voices and tell the government that what it is doing is wrong. These decisions will not just affect today but will snowball into a crisis for future generations. If we don’t question now, we risk losing an entire generation,” he warned.
