Were we wrong when we criticised Dr. Oscar Rebello and the GBA? Definitely not. Here is the truth directly from the horse's mouth published two days after christmas in a local daily. Dr. Oscar says; "Secondly, all the functions of the gram sabha are not explained to the villagers properly. While, we were members on the Task Force for Regional Plan, we had been requesting them to focus on social-economic planning and not on land use planning. We wanted villagers to conform to whatever functions gram sabhas were supposed to do as envisaged in the 73rd and 74th Constitutional amendments in the Goa Panchayat Raj Act." Since when has Dr. Oscar Rebello become an expert on the 73rd and 74th Constitution Amendment? Villagers will do the socio-economic planning and Goa's land use planning will be done by UP-ites, Delhi-ites, Kanadigas, Keralites, jaitleys, Ramanis, Prasads and the rest of the migrants? What a joke? I wonder whether this task force expert from GBA had the time to closely read Part IX of the Constitution to understand it's letter and spirit. Has Dr. Oscar the guts to defend his rubbish before Gram Sabha members? Even supposing the Gram Sabhas did not have the powers, Dr. Oscar should have been pressing for the devolution of powers. But he prefers to tow the line taken by real estate's legal consultants without bothering to udnerstand the law. Could Dr. oscar point out which law does not give the rights to the Gram Sabhas to discuss land use planning? This is what I meant about GBA's free size knickers. Truth ultimately prevails.
-soter
