Dimapur Area Ao Baptist Pastors Fellowship (DAABPF) has cautioned that undoing the Nagaland Liquor Total Prohibition (NLTP) Act, 1989 would be a blunder and further destroy the fabric of the society and families.
In a letter to chief minister Neiphiu Rio, DAABPF president Rev Temsu Jamir and secretary Marnungba expressed concerned at the opinion of certain NGOspublished in print media calling for relaxation of the Act in Dimapur district.
DAABPF insisted that no amount of consideration, either monetary, revenue, business purposes, employment, etc, should be allowed in the way of implementing the Act, which stood against the evils caused by the use of alcohol.
Claiming that Nagaland was regarded as a role model in the country as well as abroad vis-à-vis thelegislation prohibiting liquor manufacture and consumption, they warned that relaxing the enforcement of the law in Dimapur or any part of Nagaland would be like keeping one of the doors open, which would eventually pave the way to free access of alcohol all over Nagaland.
Reacting to the opinion of some that the NLTP Act was a failure and that it should be lifted, DAABPF attributed this to the availability of alcoholin the state, particularly in Dimapur. However, they stressed that the law enforcement agencies should be vigilant, rather than blaming the public or the consumers.
They emphasised that the government machinery armed with the law must put more effort to control the situation, to protect the progressive generation from degeneration and retardation.
DAABPF suggested the chief minister to make corrective measures to plug the loopholes in the Act so as to strengthen it, besides appealing to make the offence of violation non-compoundable felony.
They also requested the chief minister to empower the Excise Department more, and strengthen manpower in the departmentconcerned.
In order to safeguard the future generations of the Naga society, the duo recalled that the civil society under the leadership of the Nagaland Baptist Church Council (NBCC) had approached the Nagaland legislature to enact a law to control the use of alcohol in the state, as moral and religious education alone could not reform the society without a law.
The legislature then enacted the NLTP Act in 1989, which they contended had seemingly achieved the noble objective as they said they were the living witnesses to the social evils of those days, of pre-NLTP Act days and the current social environment.