Does Churchill Alemao deserve the credit for MOI By Nisser Dias nisserdias at gmail.com SMS to 9422437029
Last week the newspapers were splashed with self inserted advertisements of MLAs and ministers, each trying to steal credit from deserving parents for including English as medium of instruction at the primary education level. Among those elected representatives trying to get maximum unmerited mileage was Varca muscle man and PWD minister Churchill Alemao and Benaulim MLA Mickky Pacheco each trying not only to outdo but also discredit the other. There is an old saying, “If we can get the crowd moving in the right direction the politicians will have no choice but to get in front.
Churchill’s full page advertisement screamed, “The man of the masses fulfils main demand of Medium of Instruction”. While front–quarter page advertisement sarcastically thanked Mickky for, “What mess the, “So called leader of masses” had done as Chief Architect of PDF Government in 1991, has been undone by you”.
None of these characters have the right to claim credit for the victory. As it is the parents of school going children who had upped their ante against the wrong policy of the then Progress Democratic Front (PDF) government in 1991- a government propped up by Churchill Alemao after dethroning Pratapsing Rane government. The reason for toppling the government was - he was not given a cabinet berth or not made a minister. Ironically he is in the Digambar Kamat government using the same tactics.
What credit can he claim when parents rose up to undo the wrong he had done? Does it take ‘Man of Masses’ 20 years to realize his mistake? It is an open secret that this same legislator did a volte facie on the same issue during the assembly session in March this year and that too after attending meeting of parents at Azad Maidan which forced the Education minister to maintain a status quo on the issue. Churchill has not even addressed the assembly on the issue. Where was the Varca strong man when members of FORCE and some parents were arrested by the Margao police. Infact he was agitated because Benaulim MLA was present at the police station with those arrested and remained till they were released. PWD minister was part of the delegation in Delhi, what could this man possibly do to convince HRD minister Kapil Sibal? Firstly if Alemao tried to speak in Konkani, Sibal would not understand and if Churchill tried to put forth his views in English he would confuse HRD minister further. Churchill Alemao has become a legend in his own mind and maybe his daughter’s.
On the other hand Mickky Pacheco attended quite a number of meetings called by FORCE to show his solidarity. He urged and made panchayats in his constituency pass resolutions in favour of English as MOI. He also debated on the issue in the last assembly session and demanded that parents be given a choice. However even these efforts are not enough to claim credit.
Only two MLAs who can claim credit for English being made MOI are Calangute MLA Agnelo Fernandes and Curtorim MLA Reginaldo Lourenco. Fernandes has been making this demand in the assembly since 2008 and he received support from Reginald in 2009 however they have not claimed any credit for the same as they know the victory is rightfully of the parents. And unlike Churchill, Mickky and a few others they have not inserted advertisements to claim credit.
People of this state especially from Navelim and Benaulim constituencies should not forget Churchill Alemao’s election manifesto of opposing airport at Mopa, six lanning of national highway. As of today he has gone against all the promises made to the people after he got elected. But then PWD minister has made a virtue of taking credit for everything and classic example is not only MOI but also electrification of street lights in Navelim constituency on his birthday in 2010. Incidently the decorative street light were installed during Luizinho Faleiro’s tenure.
Be that as it may no individual politician or for that matter even a parent can take the credit for forcing the government into submission of extending grants to English as medium of instruction at the primary level, it is the collective effort of the church, parents, associations and individuals who worked at different levels to achieve the goal. However though, one should not forget those who laid the ground work with the vision to make English the medium of instruction one day.
For example All Goa Unaided Schools Parents Association (AGUSPA) had raised the issue with Education minister Babush Monserrate way back in 2009. On impressing upon him that trend of commercialization of education in Goa by managements of private unaided schools run by businessmen can only be arrested by reverting back to English medium of instruction at the primary level in government run and aided schools. Convinced with AGUSPA’s point of view and foresight he promised to work towards it. AGUSPA also met the Opposition Leader Manohar Parrikar, he was courteous enough to point blank tell us that he supports primary education in the mother tongue. When pointed out that managements of private unaided schools are fleecing parents because of government’s policy of not extending grants to aided school, he categorically said that the matter has to be discussed.
Then there is Dinar Barros a national awardee who was instrumental in holding the first meeting between the managements and PTAs after which Archdiocese Board of Education and Diocesan Society members stepped in to urge parents to unify for the cause, due to which FORCE was born. However Barros did not stop at that. When he went to receive the award in Delhi at the hands of Union ministers, he grabbed the opportunity took up the matter with Union ministers like HRD minister Kapil Sibal and Water Resources minister Salman Khurshid through petitions which resulted in central emissary being sent to Goa to take stock of the situation.
Members of FORCE did the ground work of contacting and organising PTAs to galvanise parents from all over the state. This is the ground reality. It is the parents who worked for the cause. Each and every parent lent support to the cause in their own way. Therefore I say it is not the victory of any politician not even politicians who have spent huge amounts of money to get publicity through self inserted advertisements. It is the victory of the parents.
The advertisements are meant only to garner and attract votes. Parents who after 20 years have undone a wrong of the PDF government should cast their ballot intelligently. (ENDS)
===================================================== First published in Gomantak Times, Goa - June 2, 2011
