SHILLONG:
After days of speculation the People’s Democratic Front (PDF) on May 5 finally decided to merge with the National People’s Party (NPP).
The PDF will finally merge with the NPP at a programme to be held on Saturday at 4 pm.
This decision of the PDF to join the NPP was in line with what deputy chief minister and the latter’s national vice-president Prestone Tynsong told recently.
During an election campaign for NPP candidate Samlin Malgniang in Sohiong constituency, Tynsong said that something big will be happening on May 6 at 4 pm.
The decision to merge with the NPP was arrived at after the General Executive Council of the party gave the green signal to the leaders during a meeting held at Shillong Club.
During the meeting the two PDF legislators, Banteidor Lyngdoh (Mawkynrew) and Gavin Miguel Mylliem (Sohra), the party’s general secretary Auspicious Lyngdoh Mawphlang other leaders and party workers from the districts and units were in attendance.
PDF president Gavin Miguel Mylliem said that there were requests from different political parties to merge with them but they decided on NPP since both the parties have been working together since 2018 under the Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (MDA) government under the able leadership of Conrad Sangma.
“We have placed this agenda before the party and most of the members were politically inclined to the NPP considering the ideologies,” Mylliem told reporters after the General Executive Council meeting.
The PDF president also made it clear that the party was not dissolved but this is a case of merger.
Mylliem said that at the merger ceremony on Saturday a “merging document” will be made public which will be signed by both he as president of the PDF and Sangma as NPP chief.
The Sohra legislator said that in the run up to the 2023 Assembly election both the parties had different agendas, which were placed and said before the public.
“So that is the reason why we as members of the CEC (Central Executive Council) thought that all these agendas need to be written in the form of an official document so that there will be an official signing of this agreement,” Mylliem said.
On the issue of allotting cabinet berth to one of the legislators after merger, he said that deciding on it would be on the wisdom of the Chief Minister.
On the workers of the PDF who had agreed to merge with the NPP, Mylliem informed that the Chief Minister had told him that the party will be reorganised in the coming days and all will be accommodated.