The People’s Revolutionary Party of Kangliepak (PREPAK) has said that owing to COVID-19 pandemic, the farmers of the state are facing extreme hardships and many uncertainties.
A release issued by secretary in charge, publicity and propaganda, Leibaak Ngaakpa Luwang has stated that by the deeds of the state leaders, who act as minions of the colonial rule, the labourers are suffering greatly as their basic needs remained cut off. There can never be a means to realise a self-sustaining state economy as long as the farmers and labourers are oppressed and have no place in the system, it stated.
Meanwhile, government officials are following the behaviour of the colonial rulers and further spreading the corruption among the public, and to bring down the culture of hard work from the people, it stated. They have joined the race to loot what rightly belongs to the public, it added. They no longer posses the attitude of ownership and started behaving like dependent slaves who had abandoned all shame and taking part in the game of plundering the state’s wealth, it said.
The release said, due to such rampant act of looting one’s own personal wealth, the private firms and institutions die out and they are taken over by ‘corporation’ which is another facet of colonialism.
Such opportunistic outlook of a colonial rule which does not possess any sense of ownership or guardianship has destroyed the work culture among people and it has resulted in gradual deterioration of state economy and birthed mass corruption among the people.
On the other hand, those working at private firms, factories, shops, media houses and companies are living under wretched conditions under the prevailing system run by the colonial government, PREPAK stated.
Besides not getting the wages they rightly deserve for their work, they are also denied the social security that would cover their health, education etc. for their families, it stated. Since the rights of the farmers are denied by the government, they can no longer continue their work with dignity. The farmers have even started considering their profession as something to be ashamed of, it stated.
It is truly unfortunate that the farmers can no longer sell their produce at the market with pride, the release stated. When the people start looking down on farmers and consider those who buy the farmers’ produce as someone deserving respect, it is a sign of society which has lost if path and headed towards a certain doom, it added.
The colonial rulers, following what was taught upon them by the British, are putting efforts to ensure that Kangleipak (Manipur) remains dependent in every sector, it further said adding attempts are made to topple the working class from their ownerships and possessions by the bourgeois class. The people should not take this lightly, it added.
Meantime, those working at both the public and private sectors are living under deplorable conditions, the release stated. Efforts must be made to improve their situation, it stated. As educated youths are facing unemployment, this has resulted in loss of human resources.
As long as the colonial rule continues to exist, human resource will be utilised as a machine to make one kill another or render itself completely useless, as well as destroy natural resources by turning the community into a consumerist society, it said.
Keeping in mind of the conflicting opinions concerning the opening of the ‘Eastern Corridor’, the people of ‘Western South East Asia (WESEA)’ must think forward and shift their focus from the ‘question of survival’ to the ‘question of sustenance’, the released stated. There is a dire need to create a working class society which recognizes their working lifestyle and establish their rightful place in society, it added.
Concerning the plight of the labourers during extensive lockdown period, the state government had announced a welfare scheme by issuing a statement on April 9, PREPAK said. However, the some people have misappropriated the benefits meant for the labourers working at private firms, factory, company and industries, it said. Such activities must be immediately stopped and labourers must be given the highest respect, it added. PREPAK will always stand up for the oppressed kind, the farmers and the labourers, the release said. Their rightful wages must be handed out in a timely manner. Employers must never treat the employees unkindly, it further said. PREPAK cautions the authorities concerned to hand out benefits meant for the farmers and labourers in a timely manner, it added.
