The five-month-old CPM-led LDF regime is, by every passing day, losing public support due to its inefficiency, total absence of positive decisions, lack of cohesion between the partners, total civil war between VS-Pinarayi and lack of vision and action-plan for taking the state forward, and is on the verge of becoming a burden on the state.
Right from the beginning, the kick-off has not been good for the VS-led LDF government. It has been dogged in various controversies resulting in total non-performance. The spat between VS and Pinarayi-Kodiyeri over allocation of Vigilance portfolio, the Home Minister Kodiyeri'sinefficiency in handling the goonda menace and the custodial deaths of over 20 persons in five months, the scandal involving Minister P.J. Joseph who molested a co-airline passenger, M.A. Baby'swar with the powerful Christian/Muslim lobby, which controls the self-financing professional colleges etc. and now the latest Chikungunya deaths and opulent refurnishing of government bungalows of commie ministers are some of the controversies.
We may politically and ideologically differ with E.M.S. Namboothiripad or A.K. Gopalan, but they were communists to the core. E.M.S. gave his entire family-inherited property to the party and subsisted on party peanuts. But times have changed and also communists. In a shocking incident, which will make E.M.S. turn in his grave, Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan of CPM and Food Minister and AITIC leader C. Divakaran refurbished their bungalows?Manmohan Bunga low and Xanadu?for Rs.18 lakh and Rs. 12 lakh only! Marble/granite floorings, expensive sanitary and jacucci fittings, curtains, carpets and heavy wood furniture formed part of the royal makeover. Other CPM/CPI ministers? budget was from Rs. 3 lakh upwards. Some left ministers rented bungalows for Rs. 20,000/- upwards, whereas in Thiruvananthapuram, a decent accommodation still costs only Rs.5000-6000. Faced with intense criticism from CPM central leadership, CPI and RSP leaders like Veliyam Bhargavan, T.J. Chandrachoodan, Media, UDF, BJP, etc both vacated the houses. Worse still Kodiyeri Balakrishnan shifted to CPM flat complex! BJP President P.S. Sreedharan Pillai has strongly criticised this, since it is impractical to visit the Home Minister in a party guarded CPM fortress. He has charged that CPM has commenced its cell-rule.
Despite over 120 people dying of Chikungunya and over a lakh affected by it Health Minister P.K. Sreemathi, a Pinarayi chela remained unconcerned. When the disease was at its peak, in Alappuzha district, she was scuttling between PB in Delhi and Thiruvananthapuram to carry out group war against VS. She contradicted VS in the assembly saying these were not Chikungunya deaths despite medical experts confirming it.
The CPI Ministers like Mullakkara Ratnakaran, C. Divakaran etc. have been criticised by their own leaders as inefficient and living in a dreamer'sworld. Industries Minister Elamaram Kareem has done nothing for industrial revival but has implemented his communal ideology by placing Muslims in vantage positions in his department, including T.O. Sooraj who was indicated by Marad Commission as blatantly communal.
The option before VS is very limited. Either he throws out the inefficient and scheming Ministers, inducts a smart and efficient team and works for the rapid development of the state or put up with these comical and inefficient team fearing opposition from Pinarayi, somehow push through for five years and be dubbed by history the head of a most inefficient and unpopular regime. The ball is in VS'scourt. Whether he will be, maker or breaker, he has to decide.
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