Quality, not Quantity is more important

Every once in a while comes a post which brings a big smile on your face. I thank my father for saving a copy of Now! for me. This year's Khangchendzonga Kalam Puraskar winner Mr. Jigme N. Kazi has given a most worthy speech. Some of the things he has mentioned in his acceptance speech echo my thoughts.

On Sikkimese Society: "If we cannot uphold certain basic and fundamental values of human existence such as freedom, democracy, justice, self-respect and the rule of law we miss the opportunity that life offers to each one of us. The first indication of a society's degeneration is when individuals live and work only for themselves. Sikkim is on the verge of being a dead and decadent society. Our constant efforts to camouflage ourselves will not work in the long run. We will be fully exposed when the time comes. We locals often distance ourselves from the byaparis, the business community, for encroaching into our economic and political rights and interests. Little do we realize that while they sell potatoes, tomatoes etc. we are the real byaparis. We have sold our king, our flag, our country, our distinct identity and political rights. Not content with this we are still selling our hills and valleys, our lakes and rivers, our land and people, our religion and culture, and worse of all our self-respect and dignity. Is it really worth sweating it out for such people?"

On Sikkimese Politics: "There is no future for Sikkim and the Sikkimese if our political leadership- ruling and opposition- fails to rise above mundane things and continues to mislead the people while making great promises. It is futile to fight for the distinct identity of Sikkim within the Union if the leaders of our larger community are not sure of who they are, whom they represent, and what they really want. Nepal's political situation, where ethnic communities are being reduced to a minority in the land of their origin, has still not opened their eyes. This is because while our head is still not clear our heart is full of greed. When will we ever live in a place where the mind is without fear and the head is held high? When will this non-stop looting stop? Corruption has reached a point of no return. Disillusionment has set in and this seems to be irreversible. These are dangerous trends in a sensitive and strategic border state like Sikkim. The erosion of our unique and distinct cultural identity, the systematic manner in which seeds of division are sown in our social fabric, and finally the destruction caused to our fragile environment and ecology cannot and must not be easily condoned. We cannot blame our leaders only; we, too, have shamelessly become agents of division, disunity and destruction. We have sown the wind; we will surely reap the whirlwind".

I have deep respect for Mr. Kazi for standing by his beliefs and prinicples. This speech is everything I have wanted to say about our society and the direction we are headed. Thank you Sir for penning this. The fact that I am putting this up on my blog is to save it for future reference. There is still hope for us Sikkimese and I am sure with dedicated people like you, the cause is not lost. Thank you.