CM invites people to stake ownership and monitor implementation

“ONLY PEOPLE’S INVOLVEMENT WILL ENSURE DESIRED IMPLEMENTATION OF POLICY INTERVENTIONS”
GANGTOK, 20 March: In a Legislative Assembly bereft of any Opposition presence, Chief Minister Pawan Chamling donned the role today, targeting the bureaucracy and the contractors with some scathing bluntness. Earnest policy interventions of the legislative were being sabotaged by the “looting tendencies” of contractors who made no efforts to deliver quality and officers who have failed to monitor implementation with the diligence that the people of Sikkim deserve. Inviting the people to stake more pronounced ownership of the development model laid out by the State Government, the CM contended that only such proactive involvement of the people will now ensure quality delivery and repair the system to the desired level of accountability.
The CM devoted a large portion of his vote of thanks on the concluding day of the 2-day Assembly Session today to what he saw as obstacles hindering development as envisaged by the State Government. He stressed that ineffectual implementation was the biggest challenge facing the government. Although there is noticeable development and marked improvements in the standards of living in Sikkim, development projects by and large are still lacking in quality, he admitted.
Better implementation, he stressed, can be ensured only if all sections of the society – the legislative, the executive and the masses – owned joint responsibility towards Sikkim and dedicated unflagging commitment to ensure quality implementation of policy decisions.
As for the policy interventions undertaken by the State Government, the CM pointed out that these have been attested as earnest commitments with far-reaching impact even by the Central Government. Concepts like capacity building, power generation, universal healthcare and right to education were promulgated in Sikkim some years ago and are now climbing in the priority list of the Government of India as was underlined in the President of India’s recent address to the Parliament before the Budget Session, the CM pointed out.
It was hence necessary for all concerned, from the bureaucracy to the contractors to the stakeholders, to understand how glorious the future could be for Sikkim if quality delivery could be ensured.
It was no longer enough to only ensure timely completion of projects but equally important to also ensure quality, the CM stressed.
While this should be the normal responsibility of the concerned departments, its officers, panchayats and the contractors, because implementation was not up to the mark, the people should become more involved and proactively inspect and monitor quality of the works.
“I don’t have technical know-how, but I am honest in my commitment towards building Sikkim and this has helped me reach Sikkim to its present level of development,” he shared, while adding that “responsible politics and responsible politicians create a responsible system peopled by responsive bureaucrats and masses”.
Reiterating his call on the people to understand and deliver on their responsibilities more proactively, the CM said that this will require people to first grow out of the existing mindset which sees development as the sole responsibility of the government.
“People have to realize that at the end of the day all policy interventions are aimed for their welfare and unless they claim ownership of these initiatives, quality delivery cannot be ensured. Also, once they become active participants of the process, they will also harness the opportunities created better,” he said.
The CM also rued that people still see their role in a democracy limited to electing a government. “People’s involvement has to be more pronounced and consistent through the intervening years between elections so that their work proceeds unhindered by opportunist profiteering or willful derailments,” he said, stressing that people should not remain detached bystanders.
While thanking the house for passing the Vote of Account 2012-13 and the Second Supplementary Demands for Grants 2011-12, the CM directed that this fund be utilized properly for earmarked government programmes and priority sectors.
The CM also commented on the earthquake rehabilitation works underway in the State and while reminding the House that Sikkim had suffered extensive damage on 18 September last year, directed the concerned departments to complete all repair works in time as the monsoon season and its attendant potential to cause further damage was approaching.