When catchy slogans, flying kites and road shows with foreign Heads of States, subsidies and doles fail to capture the imagination of the masses, stirring up negative feelings related to religion, region and caste become the most relied upon tools for politicians to fall back upon. The outcome of such tactics may be deeply damaging for the unity of the nation, but in politics it is all about grabbing power irrespective of the social costs. Gandhiji had said, “nothing is so easy as to train mobs, for the simple reason that they have no mind, no meditation.” So what we see and hear of happenings in many parts of our country is nothing short of a ‘rule of the mob’. The loudest and most abusive speaker wins the debate on TV. Lathis and swords are freely employed on the streets to dispense justice even before the guilt of the accused is established by law. The mob sentiment is law and the bully has the Right of Way. Rationality, humanism and rights get rubbished and ridiculed as leftist and secular. So what we are then left with is rowdyism and violence, which is probably rightist. Goa may have not yet witnessed such mob rule, but there exists a cold aggression and covert violence based on religion, region and caste which has the potency to be exploded by desperate politicians sooner or later.
The latest ASER survey report on the state of education in the country reveals how in rural India over 25 per cent of students in the age group of 14 to 18 years cannot read fluently even in their local language, 36 per cent could not name their country’s capital and 21 per cent could not solve a simple sum of division. These findings are very much of relevance to the political health of the country because this is probably the gullible ‘Young India’ which politicians are now eyeing as a vote bank. Rural areas are favourite targets for surveys by the urban elitist academicians, but which agency will dare tell us how many educated urban citizens in the age group of 18 to 35 years possess the basic knowledge necessary for making Responsible Political Decisions? The segment of citizens classified as educated are conditioned by our education system to serve the purpose of industry and boost GDP but not societal peace. This segment suffers from a huge inflated ego which projects itself as ‘qualified to speak’ and that is why, while there is acute distress in the country, there are those who claim that India is shining. And what about the quality of knowledge and actions of such citizens when it comes to their civic rights and duties? What will be the percentage of citizens in Goa itself who have bothered to do their own factual assessment on the social, economic and political health of the State before they endorse development policies?
The problem with us Goans is that we are so busy with our selfish pursuits thereby allowing ourselves to succumb to readily available political gossip in shaping our political thoughts and actions, most of which are not really actions but mob reactions. We do not have the courage to think and speak independently because we fear becoming unpopular and getting accused of being anti-Goan. Speaking the truth for many is a career hazard because it may deprive them of a ‘puraskar’ (award) or a plum posting. Intolerance to opinion is not just the hegemony of the right-wing fanatics, it is prevalent even in so claimed secular movements of Goa. To be accepted as a ‘Goycho mogi’ (lover of Goa), one has to prove it by being reactionary - not rational and proactive - to political and private actions of select politicians and industrial houses. The voice of dissent has to conform to what is viral and trending. No sooner anyone attempts to widen the scope of the debate to get to the root of the problem, (s)he is countered with abuse and defamatory propaganda. Goan Asmitai is more about dancing to prescribed music and chanting mob mantras. This is exactly why after fifty years of political slogans and swearing to protect Goa and Goenkarpon, when actually Goa is being sold to the highest bidder, we are now left with no other political options except to fall back on erecting statues and inaugurating opinion poll squares.
The blame for the destruction of Goa can no more rest exclusively on select politicians. The betrayal of Goa has been a collective collaboration of the Goan people with successive governments. The preference shown for choice of politicians to govern has never been about their ability, performance and commitment to the Goan cause, but more driven by religion, caste, personal relationships and most of all petty favours and selfish monetary interests. We conveniently seem to forget the Goan who trades off his citizenship and his vote, all for a foreign passport. And the Goan property brokers who scout the villages for properties and ancestral homes to be showcased for Mumbai and Delhi builders never get the attention they deserve as traitors. The crafty Goan expertise which shows loopholes in the law to builders on how to construct on hill slopes and market it as eco-friendly development strut like peacocks with save Goa flags. Then the local village agents who manipulate the Gram Sabha to blackmail and hike their underhand deals for licensing and clearances manage their trade smoothly. Let us not ignore the goykarponn enterprise of milking NRIs. Thus the betrayal story of Goa is much more complex than what the censored version given to the public reveals. Goans have been systematically kept busy with cultural entertainment to prevent observation and deep reflection on the social and political realities.
Before paying their respects to the leaders of the Opinion Poll, Goans should first learn to have one idea of Goa which is above religion, caste and political considerations. Let the ‘don pannam’ not be two leaves which signify double-speak, but let it be a symbol of unity which appreciates and fosters diversity in language, script, food and beliefs. Let Goans first decide whether Goa’s Asmitai is about wine, women, song, food and gambling or about the sustainable living and a peace economy. The Opinion Poll Squares and memorials should be the khazans, hills, bundhs, sluice gates, lakes, ponds and wells along with human values of compassion and contentment, that brand of ‘susegadoponn’ which is in opposition to the current economy and politics of greed, opportunism and intolerance.
https://www.heraldgoa.in/Voice-Of-Opinion/Voice-Of-Opinion/Duplicate-Goenkarpon-fake-asmitai/126061.html
Published in Herald Review, Sunday, 28 January 2018
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