Came across the acronym, CONG, for Goan Origin Non-Goan in a report on the gram sabha meeting in Colva. However, I find it hard to decipher what exactly it means. I assume it's a put-down for holders of foreign nationalities. As per the report a Portuguese Goan was prevented from speakingg at the meeting. This person is said to hold an OCI card. I know OCI card holders cannot vote or stand for elections. Maybe lawyers on this forum can inform if the ban extends to their participation in speaking at village forums, forget standing for panchayat elections. Can they be prevented also rrom speaking at church councils or gauncar meets? Who decides that Goans holding OCI cards while being foreign nationals are "non- Goan'? Just to extend the debate, Sir Menino of the infamous Niz Goenkar website has remarked that "it is beyond understanding as to why so much hatred is created by the communalist chief minister of Goa Manohar Parrikar against the Portuguese Goans." His beef against Parrikar is that Portuguese Goans are denied voting rights in Goa. Pity him for his inability to "understand" that it's NOT the Goa CM who is responsible for denying our erstwhile OCI card holders, including myself, but that the laws/rules are framed by the Union government. No point in trying to crucify Parrikar for no sins of his. In fact, credit must be given to him that he's trying to get changes to the law so that some of the election of the alleged "Portuguese Goan" MLAs can be made legal. Parrikar is gambling with his luck to convince the Union government but the odds are very much against him. Pity also that Sir Menino doesn't understand that Parrikar is NOT a Portuguese citizen, though Portugal would want us to believe that all those born before 1961 are "automatically" Portuguese citizens despite the fact that the Indian government gave Indian citizenship to all Goans in Goa after India "took over" the colony (excuse me for not saying "Liberated"). The question of accepting Indian supremacy doesn't arise for "Portuguese citizens", so please be advised that you are supreme and soverign in your individual capacity. If you do hold an OCI card then you are bound to follow the rules and conditions that come with it and so your "supremacy" is limited when you come to Inida. I was off-target on this site for a long time and now I am back on the hit list. A commentator, who writes under the penname of Anonymous the VIII (perhaps our own King Henry VIII), wrote, "Why do Indians want a piece of Goa for themselves and at the same time criticize Goans? URINE KOREA is one of them who has settled here in Goa. Does this URINE not have a home after all his years in Bombay? Or was he kicked out from the slums there by his family for dribbling urine from his mouth?" I wish he had the b***s to provide his real identity, though I can expect him to say that identity of the writer doesn't matter. It's a small circle of It's beyond my understanding (to borrow Sir Menino's words) why the commentator is still pissing on me. If these guys were pissed off since the day my piece on Liberation appeared in the Herald. I This URINE can keep also keep on pissing on folks such as Anonymous the VIII but feels it not worth the time and patience.
Eugene Correia
