Joining fellow regional parties in the Regional Democratic Alliance (RDA) would go counter to the Voice of the People Party’s (VPP) ethos and raison d’etre, party spokesperson Batskhem Myrboh said today.
The VPP is on a high after sweeping to victory in the Shillong parliamentary seat election and is hoping to carry that momentum forwards into the delayed district council elections.
The RDA currently comprises the United Democratic Party (UDP) and Hill State People’s Democratic Party (HSPDP). Together they performed poorly in the Lok Sabha election but the UDP is still the biggest regional party in the Meghalaya Assembly.
Myrboh maintained that there is no meaning in having the VPP around if it works with the RDA. “We formed the VPP because the HSPDP and UDP were not fair to the public. The VPP has strong principles and the people have seen this in the last MP election,” he said. “When the people are united with the VPP…why should we unite with the UDP and HSPDP?”
Both the UDP and HSPDP had recently held out the hand of friendship to the VPP through public statements made by their respective leaders. However, the VPP still feels that it has the strength to go it alone. If its wave continues, the VPP could deal a devastating blow to the UDP and HSPDP by drawing away their supporters.
