Letter to Dr.A.P.J Abdul Kalam, President of India

T, Gauzadou
Ex-Minister
President, Senior Citizen Welfare Association,
Churachandpur District, Manipur

To,

Dr.A.P.J Abdul Kalam,
President of India,
New Delhi.

Sub: Prayer for repeal of
1) Member of Parliament Local Area Development Fund and
2) Member of Legislative Assembly Local Area Development Fund

Your Excellency,

I have the honour to state the following_ facts on the subject cited above favour of your Excellency's kind consideration.

May I be permitted to say that the first and primary duty of any government is to preserve law and order in society, protect the innocent and punish the guilty. However, the Government of India has made a big mistake and miscalculation by giving priority to development over the preservation of law and order with a sad result that muscle power is ascendant and violence rules everywhere. The peaceful, law-abiding and quiet citizen is at a loss to understand how he should cope with the problems. To give priority to development over the preservation of law and order is to put the cart before the horse.Before Independence,British rule allowed commerce and industry to flourish and men of moderate wealth to feed secure in theirpossessions. Nowadays we do not feel secure in our possessions and everyone knows that progress of any development works in Manipur is far from satisfactory due to deterioration of law and order in the state.

I beg to add that the Government of India has made another mistake in creating 1)Member of Parliament Local Area Development Fund and 2) Member of Legislative Assembly Local Area Development Fund to enable the Hon'ble Members to taske up development works in their respective constituencies. The amount of the fund is Rs. 2 crores per year for each Member of Parliament and Rs. 20 lakhs per year for each Member of Legislative Assembly of Manipur. The policy is ideal but in practice it has encouraged corruption and the fund seems to be bonus for the Hon'ble Members as there are instances where the said was not utilised for the local area development. Money drawn without work. This is an open secret.

I beg to add that except one community hall at Sugnu and one girls' hostel at Kamjong, which were constructed with Local Area Development Fund of the Hon 'ble Member of Parliament Shri Rishang Keishing, we have. not heard about any other projects taken up by the . Members of Parliament in Manipur. Shri Holkhomang Haokip,Ex -MP in his book entitled
"My Activities in 13th Lok Sabha " has mentioned that he was to sanction Rs. IO.lakhs from his M.P.Fund for construction of one swimming pool at Tamenglong distrcit head quarters. He has not mentioned any other schemes taken up by him while he was a Member of Parliament.

Member of Parliament. I do not know the schemes taken un by the M.L.A.s of Churachandpur distrcit with their Local Area Development Fund in spite of the fact that they have been receiving this fund each Year-from 2002.

Since the introduction of the said fund, money power of the Hon'ble Members has gone upvery much. As time went by. M.P election and M.L.A. election have become a sham election for obvious reasons. One has to spend 50 to 100 lakhs of rupees to win election to become an M.L.A. As such, it may not be wrong to say that any honest social worker who wants to win election by lawful means has no more chance of becoming an M.L.A. Businessmen have become M.L.A.s because they have money power to get anything. To be an M.P. or an M.L.A. has become the most lucrative business of today.

543 Members of Parliament @ Rs. 2 crones per Member receive Rs. 1086 crones in a year, for their Local Area Development Fund and in five years they get 5430 crones of rupees. In Manipur, each M.L.A. gets Rs. 20 lakhs in a year for his Local Area Development Fund. The 60 M.L.A.s get Rs. 6000 lakhs in five years. If this amount could be utilised for purchase of electric power, the people will get enough electric power I am sorry to say that our Hon'ble Members degrade themselves by misutilising the so-called Local Area Development Fund. We pray that they should always be instruments for peace and prosperity of our country.

In view of the facts stated above, I fervently pray Your Excellency to kindly consider for repeal of:

1) Member of Parliament Local Area Development Fund, and
2) Member of Legislative Assembly Local Area Development Fund for sanctity of the administration.