On the occasion of the 109th birth anniversary of freedom fighter Ramasamy Padayatchiyar, Naam Tamilar Katchi chief coordinator Seeman paid tribute by garlanding his statue in Chennai.
Speaking to reporters afterward, Seeman said, ``Wherever the Secretariat is built in Chennai, there will inevitably be traffic and crowding. In that case, I do not understand why they are insisting on acquiring 5,000 acres of land and building a new Secretariat at any cost.
The livelihood issues of the people in the Meghamalai region are not raised in the Legislative Assembly. Neither the hardships of the Manjolai plantation workers nor the appeals that the fishing community, which has lived in Pattinapakkam for 12 generations, should not be evicted from their homes receive the government’s attention.
Instead, the incidents of film publicity banners and posters being torn down are being discussed here as the major issue. The announcements and government orders regarding the construction of a new Secretariat are merely paper-level declarations; in practice, it is neither going to happen nor be allowed to be built.
Leaders like Mr. G.K. Vasan say, `This announcement was issued only after studying that officials, ministers, and Members of the Legislative Assembly need a new building with modern facilities.'
Those who say that a new Secretariat is needed must be asked: “What is lacking in the Secretariat that is already in use?” Even if additional facilities are needed, allocating Rs. 1,200 crore for a new building would be a wasteful expenditure. During the tenure of former Chief Minister Karunanidhi, a building was constructed specifically for a new Secretariat at a cost of Rs. 600 crore.
After the change of government, during Jayalalithaa’s administration, that building was converted into the Omandurar Government Hospital. Those who remained silent without fighting to have it opened as the Secretariat, in line with the purpose for which it was originally built, are now saying that a new building is needed for modern facilities, which is contradictory.
When Chennai city is already struggling with severe traffic congestion, there is no justification for clearing people’s homes and constructing new buildings. The existing Omandurar complex building itself can be modernized with the necessary modifications and used as the Secretariat. Instead of that, in a situation where there is already a debt burden of Rs. 13.5 lakh crore, borrowing again and wasting public money is not acceptable.
The country’s real problems, such as rising electricity charges, higher property taxes, and the livelihood struggles of ordinary people, must be discussed. We must avoid implementing wasteful projects with public money and wasting public funds by switching parties for positions and forcing by-elections. Only through fundamental political and administrative changes can real benefits be delivered to the people.
Politics can be discussed with those who understand politics. There is nothing to say to those who spread slander. The view shared by Vijay Sethupathi is only a general principle of leadership.
He has only recorded what books written by people like Iraianbu Sir say about how a leader should be. Taking that personally as an attack on oneself and making an issue out of it is unnecessary. There is no benefit in focusing on such needless clashes of opinion. I do not agree with attracting foreign investments.
During former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa’s tenure, it was said that investments worth several lakh crore rupees had come in. But only Tamil Nadu’s national capitalists like Shiv Nadar and Martin here can invest between Rs. 10,000 crore and Rs. 15,000 crore. The right approach is to encourage domestic capitalists and start industries. Relying solely on foreign investments will not be a solution.
Today, with electricity charges and property tax having tripled, the poor and working-class people have been severely affected. Those who paid a Rs. 1,000 electricity bill are now being forced to pay Rs. 3,000. Allegations are being raised that in Tambaram Municipal Corporation, a contract was awarded for an already constructed building, leading to corruption of up to Rs. 46 lakh.
The Chief Minister, who claims to provide corruption-free governance, must answer for all this. I greatly appreciate and welcome the Left parties’ decision to contest independently. However, they should have taken this decision much earlier.
It is regrettable that they have been complicit in Tamil Nadu’s corrupt systems for so long. It was the communist movements that sowed revolutionary and socialist ideas in us. If they had announced it in advance, we would have refrained from fielding Naam Tamilar Katchi candidates and would have supported them instead.
MLAs elected on behalf of the AIADMK resigning their posts, joining the ruling party, and then contesting for the same MLA seat again is an act that wastes public money.
Public money worth up to Rs. 50 crore is wasted to conduct a by-election for a constituency. Spreading the false notion that “only if you are in the ruling party can you serve the constituency” is dangerous to democracy. A legal amendment should be brought in to either ban those who switch parties for office from contesting elections for 10 years, or make the concerned individuals bear the Rs. 50 crore by-election expense themselves,” he said.