Let Us Be The Change That We Want
Even though curtains have came down on the year of the scams, 2010, optimism for the New Year has not been on the boil and has somewhat lost it’s savor, as we all half heartedly and without conviction hope for a better New Year 2011 on all fronts. It is true that there is no use crying over spilled milk, but, how can we forget the morbid and melancholic year that’s just ended ? At the beginning of 2010 our Chief Minister had promised to have the mining policy within the first three months of the year, one year later it is yet to see the daylight and illegal mining thrives and flourishes unabated. Over the years the garbage problem has only been getting worse and there is no sign of any commitment from the administration for redemption, as yet another year goes by and garbage is riding the colossal wave of a tsunami. Another year gone by and the mermaid off the Candolim coast is still a tourist attraction and an environmental nightmare and should be declared as the eleventh wonder of the world. The culprit right in their midst and yet they fail to take him to task. The accused in the swords case are on rampage at Monti Dongor and the perpetrators of the terror attacks during the Diwali celebrations two years ago are not yet convicted and their masters are still at large, courtesy of the snail pace judiciary on one hand and the understaffed, undertrained, underpaid and overtly corrupt police on the other hand, as the crime rate soars to new heights, as another dawdling year goes by for criminals to continue to do as they please, as the mighty protective hands of our politicians are extend over them. Goa has opened up wholesale trading in drugs and prostitution, as parlours and vendors multiply in unimaginable numbers as yet another year flashes by and our home minister is none the wiser, even as the top drug lord escapes from right under his very nose. Coastal villagers still have sleepless nights as the CRZ resident evil ups it’s ante to shatter their well earned dreams and lives, finding no solace as another torrid year goes by. The lives of the lower strata of Goans have been torn apart as the prices of essentials and necessities have sky rocketed and people are falling belly up to the inflation that’s zoomed past the variable of Aam Aadmi’s sustenance, pushing the Aam Admi in to a further quandary, as another year goes by and their future looks dreary and aghast. Our Goan activists have had another blistering years as Chief Minister and his cohorts try to take Goans for a ride, not adhering to the public opinion, after pains taking operations of scrutinizing the RP and redirecting it’s deficiencies to the benefit Aam Aadmi. Goans are left fuming, as the bluff master at his best, bluffs past another sordid year. The Aam Aadmi has not yet been empowered through the 73rd and 74th amendment and the Lokayukta or the Lokpal bill, another year goes by, as our politicians are still reluctant to empower the very people who had generously elected and empowered the very same politicians. It’s been another year as usual where our political elite, have built up their personal fortunes at the cost of Goa and Goans, the commission agents undeterred by the plight of Goa and Goans continued their sorties on Goa’s environment and communidade lands, selling Goa to the highest bidder, without remorse or regret. Yet another year has gone by and the monster of corruption ceases the ease even a bit, on the contrary, corruption has flourished as our politicians’ torrid tango with corruption continues, taking Goa to the bottom of a bottomless pit. The last few years have been very turbulent for Goa and Goans and our politicians without a schism in their souls continue with more malevolence and tomfoolery. Even then, they never fail to promote themselves as impeccable pillars of virtues and sincerity, trying to defend their status of being good politicians with vehemence, only to expose the dichotomy of their political psyche and the hypocrisy inherent within. The arresting statistics of their nonperformance are a constant reminder of their sacrilegious claims. People who batten themselves down in vainglorious and narcissistic tenement will finally succumb to the siege within as we have so often seen in the past, all the people cannot be fooled all the time. There will certainly come a time when we Goans will realize, we have been had for breakfast, lunch and dinner by our conniving politicians, I only hope it happens sooner than later. As elections will be held in 2012, we have to take a good look at ourselves and around us and take cognizance of the pathetic state of affairs prevailing in Goa and the irreversible destruction and the devastation that’s been carried out in the name of development, for their own personal upliftment, with little thought or no thought at all about Goa, Goans and their posterity. We have to revamp our attitude as the future of Goa and Goans is at stake, even if lessons continue to be lost on those with political planks in place of a brain, it is high time for us to get into the equation and sort out our internecine disputes and hinge on like stoic soldiers, prove our pedigree, getting our tone and tenor in sync with the needs for redemption, and let the veracity of our corporal presence be our quintessential, defining moment in saving Goa from our very own elected representatives. The time of elections will be the time for reflection, as to where we stand in our commitment to save Goa, our votes will the deciding factor, in the change that we look forward to. If we want to save Goa from the clutches of corruption, communalism and destruction, vote for a system that will protect Goa and Goans, a system that will provide constructive development, a system that will protect and enhance our fragile ecology and environment and above all a system that we Goans will be proud off. In the New Year, in Bapuji’s own words, let us be the change that we want. Amen Freddy Agnelo Fernandes ________________________________ The content of this electronic communication is intended solely for the use of the individual or entity to whom it is addressed and any others who are specifically authorized to receive it. It may contain confidential or legally privileged information. If you are not the intended recipient you are hereby notified that any disclosure, copying, distribution or otherwise placing reliance on the contents of this information is prohibited and may be unlawful in certain legal jurisdictions. 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