The National People Youth Front (NPTF), the youth wing of the National People’s Party (NPP) hit out at the General Secretary of the United Democratic Party (UDP), Jemino Mawthoh, today after the latter demanded that Power Minister James Sangma resign for the poor state of the electricity situation in Meghalaya.
Yesterday Mawthoh made his demand that James and the Chairman and Managing Director of the Meghalaya Energy Corporation Ltd (MeECL) Arun Kumar Kembhavi be removed. The UDP is an ally of the NPP in the Meghalaya Democratic Alliance government.
Working President of the NPYF, Nickey Nongkhlaw, defended James and appreciated his and Chief Minister Conrad Sangma’s efforts in resolving the power woes of the state. The two Sangma brothers are part of the NPP.
Calling Mawthoh an untimely opportunist, Nongkhlaw said that he was a silent spectator of politics all this while.
“…Suddenly (he) found a good opportunity to gain political mileage,” Nongkhlaw said at a press conference.
The NPYF said that the fact that the Power Minister and the CMD continuously negotiated with suppliers to resolve the load shedding issue is why NEEPCO has consented to withdraw its regulations.
The youth wing of the NPP said that under Mawthoh, the MeECL would have been a headless chicken without leadership to negotiate Meghalaya’s way out of the situation, thereby extending the difficulties faced by the state.
Nongkhlaw also said that Mawthoh, who lost his seat in the 2018 election, has been out of politics and is becoming irrelevant.
“All of a sudden, on Monday, Mr Mawthoh felt that he should start fishing in troubled waters because the 2023 elections are coming up,” Nongkhlaw stated, adding a further rebuke by saying that he sounds like the mouthpiece of the Congress opposition.
