Dear brothers and sisters,
Having begun its organizational journey in 1993, SDF Party has now full grown into its matured 16th year. Launched with the massive support of the poor and down trodden, it has been identified as the party of poors. The fundamental objective of this party has always been to eradicate all types of injustice, exploitation and suppression pervading in the Sikkimese soil to make room for establishment of a Sikkimese society free of exploitation. To attain this goal the basic sanctity of the party needs to be maintained by keeping our party organization intact from anti-party elements from within and outside the party. The voices and aspirations of the poor must prevail in this party and it should be kept free of anti-people, selfish and opportunist elements.

As we notice that a luxuriant paddy field is filled with unwanted weeds, camouflaged identically with the paddy that needs to be unmistakably weeded out to allow the paddy to grow healthily, the identical unwanted weeds growing in camouflage within our party organization also need to be cleared away without compromising with personal relations, cast, creed and religion. The party organization has to be kept free of anti-people, anti-social elements, which it is evident, might have penetrated into the organization in course of its maturity and growth. This is natural and it can’t be asserted that our party is free of such elements. In course of 16 years, I have felt that many such anarchical elements have misused this party platform to their own advantage in order to satiate their selfish, petty political and economic gains. To save this party as poor- friendly institution, and to enable this party to instrumentalise in fulfilling the hopes, aspirations and dreams of the poorer section of Sikkimese society and indeed, assure them their leading representation, we should dare to weed out those enemies of ours who stand out against our pro-poor principal and our school of political thought.

I have a bitter experience in the party leadership all along these years that our party workers in the frontier of their corresponding levels of leadership have projected their own person more than the party and its leader.
Instead of projecting the party, its programme and principles, the achievements attained by it so far, the culture of projecting the individual self with pomp and show has grown in our party and this is really damaging to the strength and structure of the organization. The party workers of all ranks and file are not devoid of this growing trait. If the organization is entangled by such reactionaries, the philosophy, programmes and principles do not percolate to the grass-root level, leading to the fulfillment of personal gains in the cost of fundamentals of party agenda. I must admit that something like this has been obstructing us from reaching our programmes and principles amidst our people. The real beneficiaries and the sovereign of democratic system are our people, and they have not yet been benefited by our programmes and policies to my satisfaction.

However, we have given a lot to our people but not in a deserving form, not in a way that people are convinced to receive them as a by-product of pro-poor, village-oriented liberal government policies, but instead they are being received by the people as if they are the gift of MLAs, Panchayats or party-workers. They have not reached as their rightful and affirmative share and opportunities accrued by virtue of congenial government policy. This is really shocking.

In fact the affluence of short-term relief, facilities, opportunities, achievements and development for the people of Sikkim is the function of a progressive party, undeterred and a stable party leadership, the established party-policies and its concrete philosophical foundations as well as a scientific system of the party to push it forward with a comprehensive analysis and synthesis of its functioning.

The first and foremost duty of our party workers is to give the people a holistic realization that whatever they are getting as per their aspirations is not out of somebody’s grace but it is their own rightful and affirmative share become possible by dint of a progressive govt. and a leadership that has been instrumental behind it. Regretfully I must admit it has not so happened.

Since SDF is for all round development and security of Sikkimese people, we have no any other programme than the welfare of Sikkimese people, no other dream than the development and security of Sikkimese people and no other motive of self satiation than the renunciation of the self for the party. All our party workers should go to the village as the representative of Sikkimese people. They have to go as the servant of the people. As they go to the people in villages, let them be welcomed and loved by the people wholeheartedly with a feeling that our own party is coming to us in their form. SDF party workers should never go among the people in the label of particular person, caste, religion or community. They have to go as a messenger of the party and its Leader. Our party workers should be independently different than others, and should be strict disciplinarian, well behaved and a perfect guide and counselor. Their well-cultured behavior should please the people, and they should carry the right message of the leader and government and pass it to the people. They have to dwell upon seriously on the grievances, suggestions and all kinds of critical voices received from the people.

Our party workers should not emotionally blackmail anybody. Nobody should group together and gossip against the directions of the party. Nobody should go public with the messages and press- releases without the prior consent of party leadership and that are likely to hamper party interest. While going to the people, nobody should go as teacher or preacher but should go as a disciplined party worker. Groupism of any kind whatsoever should be avoided.

The 32 assembly constituencies of Sikkim are the territories through which people elect their representatives. No such territory belongs to a particular person, cast or religion. Anybody in want of making it a dominion of his /her personal influence is undemocratic, un-republic and anti-people and any such activity is rendered as an activity against the party policy. An assembly constituency is made for the people and can never be belonging to a particular individual. Those who, don’t even know the system of democracy wherein people elect their own representatives, but want their influence to prevail in a particular territory are principally the enemies of the party. Any SDF worker found indulged in such activities can invite disciplinary action from the party forum.

SDF party workers, as per the provision of party and constitution of party’s central leadership can hold publicity campaigns in the ward, block and constituency levels. Driven by selfish motive, anybody hampering on such party activities would be rendered the enemy of established party principles.
All the party workers have to identify themselves with party policies, principles and have to translate them into their behaviour. They have to expand themselves and be one with programmes, policies, the organizational branches and philosophy of the party. No party workers should be compartmentalized as a committee-worker, or personal-worker of an MLA or Minister. Such a practice weakens the party.
The party committees to be reconstituted this time will be as per the notified new delimitation and the upcoming legislative elections would also be accordingly held.

Hence, our party workers have to go to the villages and give fillip to the party’s organizational works while intensifying our party publicity. They have to project in a very very proper way the achievements of the govt. that have gone to the people in the form of their immediate relief and long term developments. Their publicity should be result-oriented. The security of Sikkimese people is possible only through political consciousness, social development and development in their mindset. This, the party workers should realize from the core of their hearts. If we have no attachment towards our own society, our land, if we are devoid of our self – respect, our achievements and opportunities hard – earned by us will be molested by others. It is also the duty of our party workers to clarify how the class- enemies of our people, the obstructers of our development and anti-progress elements are conspiring against us, how their covetous eyes have fallen upon the development of the state and prosperity of our people and this, our people should be made aware of through our party workers. Our party workers have to be much dutiful about this task.

On behalf of the party and the govt., I have introduced ‘Second Generation Revolution’ in profession and livelihood during the SDF party establishment day in 2007. Consequent upon the new socio-political structure, the present time is the time of transition from the established professions for Sikkimese youth. The dawn of advanced age gave the Sikkimese youth a new moment to shrug off with the ancestral profession and transfer them worthily to adopt with the emerging new profession. But this shrugging off with ancestral profession and adopting with the newly emerging professions, a compulsory transition, created a state of bewilderment due to the lack of required level of efficiency and capacity. As a result there is gradually a decline in enthusiasm, towards our traditional profession in the one hand and lose of dignity of labour in the other. To address this gap we had declared the ‘Second Generation Revolution’ concept. Through this we desired that our youth should come forward with productivity and energy so that they would transform themselves into a desired behaviourial modification, and can cultivate the maximum out of their productive potential. We had introduced Second Generation Revolution so that the Sikkimese society will undergo a positive transformation to reach the new height of prosperity. We meant for the youth of Sikkim to be the sole players of this comprehensive revolution. We meant to convey a message to our youth not to alienate themselves with their ancestral profession but to revive them to modify in a way that it meets our modern needs so that we can strengthen them and make them attractive instead of leaving them as museum pieces.

Our party workers should spread this message in the length and breadth of our state. We should dignify labour, should always keep our self-respect high. We have to be instrumental in creating a dignified, conscious, self-respectful Sikkimese society able to grasp the various opportunities coming now to them.

Responsibility is the pre-requisite of democracy. Democracy can’t be vibrant unless all of us are responsible in our respective assignments, in our respective levels. We have declared year 2008 as the “Year of Responsibility”. Our aim is to ensure that all our party workers, MLAs, Ministers and even as a Chief Minister myself, are honest in their respective assignments. We are the people trusted by the people, and hence should work as examples to become inspiration for the rest. We have to be our own examples to lead others. It is rightly said that the cattle are driven from the hind and men from the front. Therefore, the lead-walkers should be honest, dutiful and exemplary. The true meaning of honesty is the balance in thought, word and deed.

The rein of power was concentrated in the hands of a few in Sikkim earlier. We, through the devolution of power have devolved the administrative machineries of the government to reach the doorsteps of the people. In fact, the devolution of power or decentralization is the delegation of responsibilities in order to develop the state from the bottom up. But democracy is not only the guarantee of right and receipts. It goes along with responsibility. It is not a one way traffic. It involves responsible giving to the system as well. Therefore our party workers need to be orientated in this and in turn this has to be passed on to the people gracefully.

Now, our people’s consciousness level has really surfaced up and they are able enough to analyse each and every happenings around them. These days we occasionally overhear symbolic comments from our people that the sticks of our umbrella need to be changed. Why do people talk about changing the umbrella stick, a very symbolic comment, is really a matter to be deeply pondered upon by our party workers and to delve into ourselves in a healthy self-criticism.

Pawan Chamling
President
Sikkim Democratic Front
Date: - 15th May 2008