‘Greed for power infected party; delayed realization over need for change’

KOZHIKODE: CPM central committee member Dr Thomas Isaac said it would have been better if the party had realized earlier that changes were needed. He said it was only after the defeat that the party began thinking about its problems and recognized that a parliamentary obsession had developed among its leaders. Isaac was responding to a media’s question about the CPM’s expanded state committee meeting.

‘We have won in Kerala for only about 30 years, haven’t we? Haven’t we lost for more years than we have won? The fact that we governed continuously for ten years is itself remarkable. There is no doubt that 2029 belongs to us. What we discussed was how to overcome our weaknesses. This meet concluded after formulating a programme to address them.

It would have been better if we had realized the need for change a little earlier. We all tend to rethink things only when we face a setback, don’t we? Now we have discussed the issues and taken decisions and it will be implemented.

When we keep winning, there is no need to think about change. It is only after losing that we realize that something is wrong. When you govern continuously for ten years, you naturally develop a certain comfort and a sense of complacency. There may also be a feeling that governing is enough and that there is no need for struggle anymore. As a result, perhaps we did not pay enough attention to the functioning of the organization. We have now decided to put all of that right. We will rectify our organizational shortcomings,’ said Isaac.