Dysfunctional Goykarponn?

 06 Nov 2016 

With elections around the corner it is not unusual to hear the constant clamour from the public for a citizen-friendly government.

By Soter D’Souza

With elections around the corner it is not unusual to hear the constant clamour from the public for a citizen-friendly government. This is a reasonable expectation considering the rapid devastation of Goa’s environment and disappearance of people’s traditional livelihood options driven by anti-Goan and pro-corporate policies. But this denouncing of the politician and corruption seems to have become more of a ritual over the last decade with no constructive outcomes visible on the ground. There is a glaring mis-match between what the Goykar speaks and how the Goykar acts. Besides the colourful and emotive terminology of Save Goa, Goykarponn, Mother Goa, Niz Goykar, Goychi Mati or Goycho Gobor and what not, the result is nothing more than the moneyed feudalistic parivar remotely calling the shots. There is much more that lies concealed in the actions of the ‘Udta Goykar’ than what is made visible on the streets.

We may be familiar with irrational behaviour in dysfunctional families arising from exposure to an abusive or violent environment. In such situations, the actual behaviour of the victims in response to what they claim as traumatizing and painful often appears irrational. While they may admit that there exists a problem, the clinical solutions to such problems will be avoided or resisted and counter-productive coping behaviours will be preferred. It is not uncommon to see such victims endlessly hoping for some sort of a miracle which would change their situation. Finger pointing or blaming others as the cause for the situation is often a symptom of such dysfunction. So appears to be the case with Goan society when it comes to dealing with the corrupt and hostile political system. 

It is quite common to hear citizens say that if Goa is to be saved then the present set of politicians need to be dumped. Such thinking is rather impulsive and definitely not rational. This is more of a denial by the Goan to avoid owning responsibility for the mess. The victimised Goan keeps eternally hoping for a third option to emerge and bring about the desired ‘acche din’. Any emphasis on change is more about replacing the politician and shooing off the migrants than on putting in place healthy systems and processes. This ‘Tu, Tu, Main, Main’ between the politician and the people is about a complex and vicious relationship. The outcome of such reactionary responses is that the same oppressive political forces constantly conspire and adopt innovative tactics to boost their selfish political and economic fortunes.

The threat to Goa is not from politicians in Government alone, it percolates deep down to the grass-roots which witnesses a rag to riches story of so claimed social leaders who betray the trust of the people and compromise the village interests, obviously for their own economic gain. On the other hand, inspite of the complaining about corruption, the citizens shamelessly let their lives revolve around such corrupt politicians when it comes to sponsors, donations and other undue favours. This duplicity will get justified with arguments that there is nothing wrong in taking money from politicians as it is ultimately stolen public money. While some Goykars may swear that the present BJP government needs to be taught a lesson, their political actions on ground actually seem to contribute to the BJP’s mission for a ‘Congress mukth Bharat’. Floating third and fourth options to split votes becomes the favoured response instead of consolidating the opposition votes. Emotional issues are made to dominate the political discourse rather than focus on analysing policy and programs. Goykarponn gets reduced to a ‘madd’, ‘mati’ or ‘gobor’. There are no consistent principles or ethics which drive such political thinking. Thereby, when it suits, a tainted former bureaucrat or an unscrupulous real estate developer becomes accepted as the non-corrupt face on an anti-corruption platform.  

In such a dysfunctional political atmosphere the public expectations for honest and clean people in politics is more like luring healthy persons into an unhealthy environment and getting them infected. If at all new honest faces do present themselves as an option, the dysfunctional citizen’s mind controlled by a corrupt and oppressive political system will continue to unconsciously ensure that the status quo is maintained. Till such time that humility and courage to own one’s shortcomings instead of blaming the politician and migrant is not visible in Goykarponn, this ugly political circus with feudalistic clowns in attractive attire can be expected to be viral and trending with the gullible masses.

https://www.heraldgoa.in/Review/Voice-Of-Opinion/Dysfunctional-Goykarponn/108153