DR. JOE D’SOUZA
We have as a society challenges and issues confronting us as individuals, Goans, Indian nationals and a global player on the world’s scenario. Now that the new government would be taking up the challenges we face as a nation, we as individuals cannot afford to relax and sleep till the next elections come by so that we push or transfer the onus of governance on those who are elected.
In a true democracy, we elect a government for the people, of the people and by the people.
Sadly, in modern reality democracy, this is often reduced to ‘buy’ the people, so that those elected are far from the people and keep off the people.
No doubt when the votes are purchased and elections are manipulated, the true voice and the issues of the people get trivialized and marginalized and vested interest groups who have financed the elections stand tall and dedicate the policies to be taken up by the government of the day, which very often is at cross purposes to the intrinsic and holistic development of the society as a whole in a healthy and sustainable manner.
Even today if we micro-analyse the Goan mindset and the Indian psyche at large, we do not value our right to dignity as free people as more often than not we crave for the crumbs of survival as long as there is scrutiny to life and livelihood for self and family even if by the society at large.
Thus, look at the standing of India on the global context, we are amongst the most poor, highly corrupt society with a big disparity between the rich and the poor, with high infant mortality rates and deaths due to poor hygiene, malnutrition and lifestyle diseases which are growing alarmingly.
We have drained our relationship with Mother Nature and forgotten the concepts of “Sustainable Development” and all inclusive growth.
Let us now look at Goa. We Goans are a selfish, parasitic society. We enjoy carnivals, dances, musical shows and extravaganza associated with it. Be it shigmo, Diwali, Christmas or anniversaries, polluting the air with toxic pigments, chemical pollutants, noises and garbage has been our tradition. It is only about 15% of persons in the entire state of Goa, who are truly and genuinely concerned about the quality of our air, water, soil, rivers, forests and the health of our society in general as a result of the copious amounts of wastes released in our ecosystem, due to the festivities undertaken by our so called “easy going carefree society”.
We have allowed highly polluting coke based power guzzling iron and steel plants, chromium based electroplating units, heavy metal and organic chemical containing toxic pesticides, paints and tanning chemicals, many of which release their industrial effluents in water bodies, which finally find their way to the river, seas and the ocean not forgetting our surface and ground waters.
Now coming down to the submicroscopic level of good governance needed for a healthy society. At the local level, the people of Panjim have elected a new MLA in Atanasio Monserrate, after the demise of Manohar Parrikar, who had presided over the destiny of the residents of Panjim for over 25 years.
But if you have watched closely the electoral battle in Panjim: it would be extremely disgusting that the core issue of health and peace for the residents of Panjim was willfully sought to be sidelined and the alleged rape, morality, corruption and exploitation of public money were under undue focus.
I stress “undue focus” because the Goan political class, especially the BJP is the master in this game in which everyone in the opposition is either a rapist, scamster, looter-real estate shark, swindler, polluter and once this “tainted individual” joins the BJP he has all his sins absolved and becomes an unproclaimed saint.
The people of Panjim had not fallen to the usual BJP canards of allegations and now people of Goa in general and Panjimites particularly must ensure that now only the actual problems of the residents are addressed and not the jargons enumerated in the glossy manifesto which was printed and distributed.
We may not get the Congress government which Monserrate promised, the day he would be elected. Nor may we see the shifting of casinos. But for a start the MLA of Panjim should ensure that the Mandovi River front is not degraded further by the construction of the Terminal Building by the Captain of Ports.
The Smart City project has individuals on the monitoring committee who are neither from Panjim and also unfamiliar with issues of the capital city as they essentially are non-
Goans.
I have been actively concerned and connected with the problems of Panjim, be it St. Inez creek garbage gauntlet, receding green cover, CRZ violations, TCP and the NGPDA mishandling of Panjim. The gravest harm to Panjim in reality is carried out by the CoP, who has in his own wisdom given licenses and permissions besides defacing and destroying the waterfront off the banks of River
Mandovi.
Panaji’s ex-MLA had failed miserably. The sooner the new MLA takes the bull by the horns, the better it would be for him to prove himself as a person, who truly was needed to serve Panaji city.
