Crimilisation of Goan Politics
[We need to urgently cleanse Goans politics of criminal elements, says
FREDDY DIAS]
Herald 25 December, 2008
Indeed, what's wrong with Goa? This is the question any common man out on
the street would ask when he finds the lack of development and miserable
failure of governance in the state. Instead of focusing on good governance
and proper development, instead of strictly enforcing law and order and
thereby taking the state on the path of prosperity, our elected
representatives are shamelessly busy trying to come to power by toppling
each other.
Ever since its liberation in 1961, Goa has witnessed the maximum number of
elections to the state Legislative Assembly. On an average we have about one
election every three years. In fact, in a short span of 45 years - since the
first general elections in 1963 - the state has elected its Legislative
Assembly on 11 occasions and has seen the rise and fall of 20 Chief
Ministers (with a brief period of President's Rule between 4 March and 6
June 2005), most of who had made their entry into the office through the
backdoor, much against the will and verdict of the Goan electorate.
The Assemblies in the past, particularly during 1963 to 1987 (when Goa was a
Union Territory), have seen great champions of democracy and political
morality, whereas in the recent ones (after Goa attained statehood)
democracy lowered its head in shame on several occasions due to the
arrogance and open violation of rules and democratic norms as well as the
decorum of the august house in order to capture power by hook or by crook.
The current deterioration in the atmosphere of the state Legislative
Assembly was not witnessed during the nearly one-and-a-half decade-long
Maharashtra Gomantak Party (MGP) rule under the chief ministership of the
late Dayanand Bandodkar or, Shashikala Kakodkar, or, for that matter, even
during the Pratapsing Rane-led Congress government prior to the 1989
elections in the state. Now the talk is mainly about the buying and selling
of loyalties. A familiar topic doing the rounds in the corridors of power
concerns the price tags, ranging from Rs. 5 crores to Rs. 10 crores, for
MLAs inclined to defect from the ruling party/group to the opposition, and
vice versa.
Incidentally, Goa is constantly reeling under a volatile political
atmosphere, with the resultant instability and wanton corruption in the
governance of the state. The political leaders here seem to be a bunch of
shameless rogues, who no longer feel the need to conceal or disguise their
intentions to loot and plunder the public. This is because they have become
overconfident of getting themselves elected as, election after election, the
Goan electorate has been voting them to office.
In fact, there is a complete lack of political morality and
responsibility/accountability on the part of the elected representatives
towards their electorate. Most of the elected representatives have now
amassed enough wealth to sustain them and their families for generations to
come. They are not at all sensitive to the issues of the common man.
The rapid decay in the governance of the state is, however, attributed to
the increasing criminalization of politics due to infiltration of criminal
elements on the Goan political scenario. Perhaps, there is much truth in the
adage that politics is the last refuge of rogues and scoundrels. How
commonplace is the mixing of crime and politics can be gauged from a good
number of persons with criminal background infiltrating into politics
pretending to be 'social workers'. They flourished because they extended
monetary as well as muscle support to politicians, who in turn extended
patronage and protection to their anti-social activities.
Goa's downslide has been rapid. Most distressing is that it does not strike
any chord anywhere. With every passing elections the phenomenon of
criminals-turned-politicians no longer creates a ripple, let alone set the
Mandovi on fire. It has become an accepted norm.
Unfortunately, this is one of the main reasons for the deteriorating law and
order situation. The inability of the state to arrest and prosecute
politicos with criminal antecedents is primarily because the government is
part of the problem and not the solution. Criminals support the illegitimate
interests of politicians and in turn obtain protection from them and their
parties. This mutually beneficial relationship works against the
establishment of the rule of law.
Consequently, the power daddies of crime, muscle, money and mafia are
running a parallel government with established linkages with the
bureaucracy, government functionaries, politicians and strategically located
individuals, while pushing the state apparatus into irrelevance. This
decrepit state of affairs is essential to /continued criminal hold on the
public administration.
In recent times, these anti-social elements too developed political
aspirations. They realized that, just a they got others elected, they could
themselves become representatives of the people through the same procedures.
And so we have been witnessing criminals turned-politicians entering the
portals of power and becoming 'honourable' leaders of our society.
There is no gainsaying the fact that the growing Goan polity is not averse
to electing criminals if they become our patrons and deliver the goods. As a
former Chief Minister argued when quizzed about having certain ministers in
his cabinet with criminal antecedents, "I don't bother about the ministers'
past. After joining the government, they are not indulging in crimes, and
are ready to help suppress criminal activities. Ask the people why they have
elected them." How do we rebut this logic?
Why are the political parties happy to adopt criminals as candidates in the
elections? Simply, because there is no rule of law. The state has lost its
authority to govern and arrest those who break the law. Thanks to weak
police and other such law enforcement agencies, which ensure that
mafia-turned-leaders get away with molestations, rapes, and even murders.
These leaders are the law, they use force with impunity, collect protection
money, are more powerful then official tax-collectors, settle disputes, and
use loads of ill-gotten money and muscle power to oust honest candidates.
Why do mafia dons invest large sums of money in getting a leader's tag? It
is a ticket to continue extortions using political clout, gain influence,
and ensure that cases against them are dropped. Thanks to inordinate legal
delays, often abetted to political pressures, convictions of resourceful
crooks are rather rare. Besides, the returns on political investments are so
high and profitable that criminals are disinclined to invest in anything
else.
What of the future? Will we continue to put a premium on criminality? Allow
criminals to become leaders? Basically, is it good for our democracy to
have scoundrels representing the voters? When those who are supposed to lead
become saboteurs, it is time to call a spade a spade. A stop can only be put
once our polity picks up courage to end this trend. More voices must be
raised against criminalization of politics and effective ways found to
reverse this growing malaise. Above all, we need politicians who are man of
conscience, integrity and credibility, not comrades in crime.
The state badly and urgently needs refurbishing of values and institutions.
As has been witnesses, legislations alone cannot be the remedy.
Criminalisation of politics can make a mess of the best of laws. Men who
value a certain code of ethics will need to come to centrestage of politics.
The current lot of men who engage in shady deals will have to go, or be
forcibly kicked out. But the system looks totally barren of change as of
now.
COMMENTARY
By: Floriano Lobo
Goa Su-Raj Party
9890470896
Being a 'politically oriented' person, I couldn't be given a better and a
more precious gift on this Christmas Day than this above article by Freddy
Dias. And this article has evoked a lot of questions and responses in my
mind, but I will not be able to express them all, here, therefore I shall
do my best to be brief about it.
Concentrating on the last paragraph of this article, where the author
offers a solution after a long list of questions, I would venture to say
that the Goa's moral values and therefrom, Goa's politics has surely but
steadily fallen prey to erosion, bit by bit, chunk by chunk until we see
that the entire treasure bank has vanished under our very own eyes to expose
the raw nakedness of the debris. The worst part of it is that we have
realized it now. The million dollar question is: Are we too late?.
The author likes to say that the 'SYSTEM' looks totally barren of change
as of now. But the question I want to pose to the author is: Is there a
'SYSTEM' at all???
It is inevitable that Goa's politics cannot be salvaged from the pulpits and
platforms any more, for, revolutions have ceased to happen after the 'French'
and the 'Russian' ones where blood was spilled. The time has come to reverse
the process by not fighting against the erosion but by joining it, because,
there is no way the strength of the current of the money flow which helps
in the erosion can be arrested. But it can be and must be matched to start
the reversal. And if anyone should ask me 'why', my response is that 'Goa
has no other option'.
To justify the above, let me give here the concrete example this has been
done, recently. It is called "The Obama Effect". There is no doubt in
anybody's mind that American elections are won and lost with Billions of
Dollars. But Obama could make it only if the flood-gates got opened, the
flood-gates that culminated from the pouring out of ordinary pockets. It is
apt that I say this at this juncture that my party has been saying it for as
long a time as over a decade, that "Small money from a lot of people makes
better sense than a lot of money from a few" Of course, Obama did not win
with only money. He won because he motivated the people to give a little
and by that very act be a part of his entire 'win white-house' campaign. And
we have witnessed this devastating effect.
But Goa cannot have a Obama. It has to have a 'SYSTEM' which will be the
Obama. A system of clean governance, of which the author above is talking
about. And clean system of governance cannot be had without a little
self-sacrifice. What has been in operation in Goa since 1961 is a
'non-system' based on 'self-interest' only. Therefore the gradual but
massive erosion.
The author must know that Goa Su-Raj has strived hard to put in place such a
'system', not now, not last year, but ten years ago. But the lack of
liquidity of funding, and to be very frank, apprehensions of easy funding
from the side of its founding fathers, has kept it where it is today. But a
good sapling must not be sacrificed for want of a pint of water each day.
The author calls upon men who value a certain code of ethics to come to
centre stage of politics. But he must realize that these men need a
hinterland of participatory emotions and who will dip into their pockets for
a few rupees here and a few rupees there to start a powerfully flowing river
of participation through the desire to want clean governance.
And, I have no doubt in my mind that GOA can and will do it to save itself
from going overboard with having no alternatives just like a person on the
noose ready to be plunged has no alternative than to offer everything he has
to the hang-man in the hope that he will accept it.
IT IS THE ONLY WAY - In ordinary parlance we say - DO OR DIE.
--------------------------------------------------------------
---Wanted for Goa---
honest ' fighters '
NOT honest ' hypocrites '
Contact:
goasuraj
(The Recruiting Agents)
9890470896
www.goasu-raj.org
