"Get out of this place, and do not show your face ever again here ...." roared one of the Paid Members of the CPLC Initiative of Block 14. As I looked at him in total dismay and with a painful heart over such a childish attitude, and angrily offered him to take back his contribution of Rs. 5,000. He had ignored the last newsletter, and had not seen the webspace too for a long time.
This happened on Sunday, August 5, 2007. Residents of B-5, and C-145 were bitterly complaining, and holding the convenor responsible for not starting the system in time, and as a result many neighbours have been robbed....
The real issue is that at least 60 members contributing 5,000 Rs each towards capital funding, and Rs. 1,000 per month are needed to arrange the essential basics of a CPLC system. This has been explained again and again, but people are not listening seriously. Whenever an incident takes place, the immediate neighbours realise that something needs to be done. And next day they again go in to a state of denial.
I had suggested that we explore 3 options: 1)- Each of the existing 22 members make 2 members each, thus we reach our immediate goal; 2)-The 22 existing members provide a loan of Rs. 10,000 each, repayable in future; 3)- We together find some donors to fund main items of communication (Wireless set Rs. 200.000, Motorbikes, etc.).
Interestingly, as the project was initiated through an education of the community by distributing leaflets and personal contacts by the lone ranger (Hashim) in mid March 2007, the progress is very very slow. Some of the paid members have gone in to a disillusioning nightmare, and think that the Convenor is solely responsible for starting the system as early as possible. The fact is that even the current 22 paid members have mostly paid after numerous contacts and requests.
The convenor has spent a great deal of money in mobile phone communications, in photocopying the leaflets, in gas / fuel, personal time and emotional stress due to contacts with stone hearted neighbours.
Failure is not an option. We have to start a system as soon as possible. The organized criminals are on a rampage. They have recently robbed: C-111, B-70-2, B-5 (4th time!), and B-3.
The list of victims is growing. But even the victims seem to be insulated from a sense of community sharing.
Only God will help us ....
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