Goa's target for 100% literacy certified illiteracy?

 published as lead article in Oheraldo on September 23, 2024

The Dark Factor in Goa’s Rotten Politics -Soter

 Lead article published in oHeraldo on August 26,2024

The disease related to money and power is as cunning and baffling as alcoholism or drug addiction and can only take society downhill if not arrested promptly

Just a couple of weeks back, a South Goa MLA was reported to have said, “this is a sick government with a disease of troubling the people and destroying the environment.” Which government he was referring to is probably left to the imagination of the public. 

If a People’s Representative insulated with official privileges is feeling so agitated, helpless and disappointed with the governance, one can imagine the plight of the ordinary citizens. There is hardly any doubt that citizens are feeling troubled and choked by the pathetic condition of basic State infrastructure and rising lawlessness. But what exactly is that sickness which has affected the government? 

The political rot and the disastrous development policies are sold to people as the path to a ‘Swayampurna Goy’. The absence of the spirit of inquiry and scientific temper keeps the Goan community clueless about the disease which actually ails Goa’s politics and culture. For a society which cannot decipher fake news from authentic news and democracy from pathocracy, what better can one expect from the leaders it keeps throwing up?

The disease related to money and power is as cunning and baffling as alcoholism or drug addiction, and can only take society downhill if not arrested promptly. This sick political governance is far too arrogant and shameless to be threatened by street protests, media exposes and law courts alone. This needs to be simultaneously addressed with mental health interventions to tackle the personality disorders in leadership, which are said to involve long-lasting and all-encompassing disruptive patterns of thinking, behaviour, mood and relating to others. 

What we as citizens are experiencing is classical political abuse and the psychological impact is similar to that of interpersonal abuse - which over a period of time develops a co-dependency in victims of abuse.  The chronic lies, false promises, trivializing of serious issues, denial of rightful information, manipulation, polarisation, abuse of state machinery to humiliate, intimidate and control, and  the gas-lighting of critics with labels such as ‘tukde tukde gang’ and ‘anti-nationals’, are definitely not behaviours which reflect a healthy leadership from those occupying public office. The victims of abuse are being driven into questioning their own sanity, and gradually into believing that these toxic behaviours are about clean and able politics.

According to psychologist and a mental health expert, Elena Cherepov, “Political abuse is understood as the deliberate misuse of a political position for the benefit of power itself, and the use of it for institutional discrimination and maltreatment of dissenting and marginalised groups.” 

Such leaders have an outsized sense of self-importance and position themselves as saviours who will ensure justice and protection against a mythical enemy. Political psychologists, such as Dr Steve Taylor, have been warning that abusive personalities are more attracted to positions of power. 

The personality traits of abusive leadership which were categorised under the Dark Triad - narcissism, machiavellianism and psychopathy, which sound crude, are now referred to as the ‘Dark (or D) factor’ by some experts. The D-factor, according to new psychological research lists nine malevolent personality traits namely, egoism, machiavellianism, moral disengagement, narcissism, psychological entitlement, psychopathy, sadism, self-interest and spitefulness. These dark personality traits are said to result in ‘the general tendency of placing one’s own goals and interests over those of others even to the extent of taking pleasure in hurting others – along with a host of beliefs that serve as justifications and thus prevent feelings of guilt, shame, or the like.’ 

While every person may possess one or the other dark trait to some degree which may not be disruptive, the dysfunction is said to arise with ‘the general tendency of disregarding, accepting, or malevolently provoking disutility for others - accompanied by beliefs that serve as justifications in order to maximize one’s individual utility.’

In a democracy, political abuse is not a one-sided problem. Abusive political leaders cannot survive in positions of power without the tolerance and cooperation from citizens. Abuse is notorious for generating intrinsically complicated relationships between abuser and victim - in this case the citizens. Elena Cherepov, referring to studies on abusive political regimes, says that “we must not place all the blame on the leader: kings are played by their entourage.” 

Recognising and admitting political abuse becomes difficult in a society which normalizes abusive behaviour from elders or leaders, whether in family, religious and academic institutions or workplaces. Just attempt drawing the attention of a fellow Goan to his/her violation or illegality and observe the sick response you will receive. 

When coveting neighbours' goods and neighbours’ wife and the false sense of entitlement are tolerated and celebrated as a sign of social empowerment and economic prosperity by families and communities in Goa, will it not logically and naturally find its way into the Parliament, Assembly and Panchayats? We see how some groups blackmail the government into supporting their unethical and illegal trade practices under the banner of protecting local livelihoods. 

According to Dr Taylor, what is more troubling is the “abdication syndrome”, when common citizens view leaders the way children see their parents - incapable of harm or behaving negatively. Studies also show that democracies tend to vote for such toxic leaders who lack human emotions like fear, nervousness, embarrassment and guilt, and project a sense of confidence, making them appear extremely charismatic. 

The treatment for Goa’s political rot and sick governance has to begin with the people. Stop putting sick leaders on a pedestal and worshiping them for the crumbs falling from their table. If democracy has to survive and people’s rights in governance respected by political leaders, citizens will need to keep the community interests and welfare above their selfish political preferences and agendas. 

https://www.heraldgoa.in/Edit/Opinions/The-Dark-Factor-in-Goa%E2%80%99s-Rotten-Politics/225187

Flyovers - The gravestones in Goa’s cemetery of illusionary development -Soter

 Lead article published in OHeraldo on JUly22, 2024

Sometimes, it appears as if citizens are so intoxicated with the ‘politician ki guarantee’ that they can hardly distinguish political abuse and violence from people-friendly governance and genuine progress.

As the construction of the 5.15 km six-lane elevated corridor along the Porvorim stretch of NH 66 kicks off, the residents along the route keep their fingers crossed in anticipation of undisclosed horrors and guessing what the future has in store for them. Life will definitely never be the same again for those who live in the vicinity of this concrete monster.

What is scary is the silence of the residents who are likely to be adversely impacted socially, economically and environmentally in the long run with such infrastructure. Sometimes, it appears as if citizens are so intoxicated with the ‘politician ki guarantee’ that they can hardly distinguish political abuse and violence from people-friendly governance and genuine progress. Loyalty to politicians blinds them from recognising their day-to-day miseries of erratic water and power supply, treacherous roads, floods, landslides, crimes and galloping vector-borne diseases, all related to the haphazard and unscientific infrastructure development driven by political greed and corruption.

The Porvorim flyover project, according to media reports, will involve construction of a single row of 86 piers and 87 spans impacting 4 Village Panchayat areas, but none of the Gram Sabhas have been taken into confidence by the government to discuss the project and get the collaboration of the community. The only information that citizens are being entertained with are the theatrics of a local MLA blowing hot and cold, while nothing concrete is apparent when it comes to the traffic management and minimizing of the possible nuisance to the residents of the locality.

The idea for the construction of a flyover in Porvorim to ease the traffic congestion was floated way back in and around, 2007-2012, during the tenure of a Congress government. Some public meetings were organized by the then MLA of Aldona Constituency to gauge the public support for the project. That was at a time when Porvorim was not yet a separate constituency. It was at one such meeting held at Porvorim that a senior citizen had questioned, “Your government has put our traditional houses in a pit by encouraging high rise buildings all around which block our air and light, is the proposed flyover a lid on our grave?” It was the same Aldona MLA who had earlier drawn the government’s attention to a fact that the traffic chaos in Porvorim was caused by punctures every few meters from internal lanes opening onto the highway. Sensing a possible resistance from the public the flyover proposal was put on the back burner by the government.

The link between the menace of infrastructure projects and political corruption is well known to the public. Since 1990, the traffic chaos along the Porvorim route has been systematically engineered to make the need for a flyover appear inevitable. To begin with, all alternatives of proposed bypasses provided in the RP 2001 were scrapped to free up spaces for real estate. Multi-storeyed enclaves and bungalows mushroomed along these stretches. Simultaneously, construction permissions for commercial and residential purposes were cleared within the proposed set-back area for widening of the existing NH; on a mere undertaking that these structures will be demolished for highway expansion when the need arises.

Adding to the confusion were the traffic signals installed at some locations with disregard for IRC codes. It would be worth noting that the plans of some housing complexes had shown their entry-exit onto the Chogm road to obtain EIA clearances. So also, the highway was broadened in patches creating bottlenecks every few meters. Authorities turned a blind eye to traffic violations along the highway outside showrooms and supermarkets. Such vicious political tactics ensured that the situation appeared unmanageable. It was in such a climate that the bait of a flyover promising ‘Amritkal’ got swallowed by the public without questioning.

Worldwide it has been realised that flyovers are an out-dated 20th century concept which neither solves traffic congestions nor improves road safety. They only displace the problem from one location to another, besides being environmentally damaging and an eyesore. Creating affordable public transport systems and discouraging the use of private vehicles are now seen as the sustainable solution the world over. We already see how the construction of the Atal Sethu Bridge and flyover has not prevented traffic jams on the service roads leading to the Malim junction below. It has further contributed to the traffic chaos at the Merces junction and at the KTC bus stand.

If the experience of the Cortalim, Bambolim and Bastora flyovers and service roads are any pointer to the poor road engineering and safety, along with the horrors of water logging and the losses for small businesses, then the infrastructural trauma from a flyover in a populated and commercially thriving locality like Porvorim could be far worse. With traditional waterways disrupted and the destabilizing of hill slopes from excavations and drillings for the flyover construction, the settlements along the highway and downhill could witness landslides, flooding and health problems related to increased air and noise pollution. The threat from this development is far beyond 3 banyan trees and 15 coconut trees.

Now that the construction of the flyover has already been kicked off, the scope for citizens to push for other alternatives is no more. Now, the community needs to be vigilant that people-friendly sidewalks and pedestrian crossings are provided to the residents along the service roads below. They need to ensure that the drainage water from the flyover is not released on the citizens who use the service roads. Most of all, citizens need to realise that prevention is better than cure. Reacting after a crisis has struck is futile. The unprecedented rainfall has already shown the pain and misery which lies in store for Goans from such skewed development.

(Soter D’Souza has worked with community initiatives in Drug and Alcohol Abuse Prevention, HIV/AIDs Prevention, Panchayati Raj, Anti-Corruption, Environment Protection and Social Justice)

https://www.heraldgoa.in/Edit/Opinions/Flyovers-The-gravestones-in-Goa%E2%80%99s-cemetery-of-illusionary-development/223870

Porvorim flyover

Navhind Times 7 july 2024 p4

The infrastructural trauma inflicted on public - what the flyover causes down under

Are Goans Inviting A Tsunami Of Substance Abuse? - Soter

 Published in OHerald on June 24, 2024

In a day or two, Goa will be observing the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Drug Trafficking in Goa. The 2024 theme chosen by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime is: “The evidence is clear: Invest in prevention.”

Having witnessed this drug awareness day being observed in a State for over 3 decades, one does not expect anything different from the government with a National Action Plan for Drug Demand Reduction (NAPDDR), as usual, being conceived in Delhi and dumped in Goa.

Apart from the fanciful name for the scheme, it remains doubtful whether there is any scope to even think out of the box on a meaningful, innovative, efficacious and localised approach towards a ‘Nasha Mukth’ society, a cause which Mahatma Gandhi had relentlessly advocated. The day’s program may culminate in nothing more than the same hypocrisy of a stereotypical mindset and superficiality consisting of competitions, rallies and lectures for school students.

A mere formality to fulfil a commitment made to a UN convention on Narcotic Drugs, only to be forgotten until next year. The programs will target illicit drug demand reduction, but will remain silent on curbing alcohol availability and reducing consumption as it contributes significantly to the coffers of the Goa State.

Such contradictions and double standards related to alcohol use/abuse have been troubling many within the religious and medical circles. After all, how can one expect a society to have the moral conviction to tackle substance abuse when it promotes and celebrates the consumption of liquor 365 days of the year, under attractive labels of tradition, heritage and livelihood? What is the logic in targeting children for drug prevention when adult role models are lacking in Goan society when it comes to wilful restraint from the use of mind and mood altering substances in socializing?

Goa’s anti-drugs event on June 26 needs to be viewed in the background of a rise in inter-state liquor smuggling, drunk driving and other related crimes. A drunk driver ploughed the bus into temporary shelters of construction labourers at Verna killing four persons besides injuring some others. Drunk labourers quarrelling and ultimately ending up in a murder. A drunk lawyer killing a two-wheeler rider in a hit and run case. Seven drunk drivers suspended by KTC in six months. And the huge seizures of smuggled liquor and drug consignments by authorities, cases wherein even Goan youth have been arrested for alleged procurement or peddling of banned substances via the dark web. These are just some of the cases which got highlighted by the media. There could be hundreds of news reports and police cases wherein the alcohol abuse angle will get ignored, particularly in cases of domestic violence and child abuse.

The public, not just the government, can no longer afford to ignore such statistics of a 300% rise in drunken driving cases registered in just 6 months according to press reports. Citizens across Goa are already experiencing the rising nuisance of drugs and alcohol abuse at street corners and picnic spots. This is not only about a risk to the security and peace of citizens, but indicates the extent of related health, social and economic problems in the State.

With a corrupt political system aiding violations in the liquor and drug trade, we need to bear in mind that what goes on record is just the tip of the iceberg; more of a formality to show that law enforcement agencies are doing their duty. Perhaps, the alcohol and drug menace may actually be far higher, as a lot of such cases go undetected or get covered up for political or monetary considerations.

Last month’s horrific road accident in Pune caused by an intoxicated juvenile behind the wheel that killed two young techies, which came to be known as the ‘Pune Porsche case’, is a perfect example of how dysfunctional roles develop in a substance abuse environment. Intoxication with alcohol is not just an individual’s problem, it is a social disease. The drama unearthed through the CID investigation on the involvement of the family, police and medical staff in destroying evidence to shield the accused in the Pune case is very much part and parcel of this addiction dynamics. The addiction drama gets even more complicated with political influence, money and religion playing a role. We will hear it repeatedly mentioned in Alcoholic Anonymous meetings that “Alcoholism is a cunning and baffling disease”. The same also holds true for dependence on other addictive substances.

With social tolerance and defensiveness when it comes to drinking alcohol, the problem gets denied and kept under wraps amidst a steep rise in Goa‘s partying culture with drugs and alcohol. Even minors are not prevented from exposure to alcohol at social gatherings and in the homes. With the rising social and economic distress resulting from migration, unemployment, poverty, displacement, and other such issues, incidents of substance abuse as a means of coping will only gallop if not tackled with urgency.

In Goa’s paradise of vices, where profits from tourism and real estate are valued more than the lives of ordinary citizens for a government gone berserk, substance abuse and interrelated social evils are invited guests. Projecting blame on the police and migrants is not going to save us Goans from a tsunami of substance abuse and crimes which are likely to spiral out of control.

This raises the questions: How long can Goans harp on the horrors of addiction to banned narcotic and psychotropic substances and play down the social impact from the abuse of licit substances like liquor, tobacco and the rest? Isn’t there a need for prevention campaigns to tackle abuse and addiction to mind and mood altering substances across the board?

(The writer was a Counsellor at a Drug Prevention and De-addiction Centre in Goa)

https://www.heraldgoa.in/Edit/Opinions/Are-Goans-Inviting-A-Tsunami-Of-Substance-Abuse/222801

Divided We Walk, Unity A Stranger - Soter

 Lead article published in OHeraldo on May 27, 2024

Bachao! Bachao! Goa khatre mein hai! Almost two decades later, after the much hyped accomplishments of the anti-RP agitation in 2006, the same cries of ‘Goa Bachao’ continue to reverberate with no respite from the ground being snatched from beneath the feet of the Goan people. What raised many eyebrows was the timing of what appeared more like a ‘bachao abhiyan’ season 2 episode, which coincided with the LS election campaign, when the people’s focus was being drawn towards broader issues of a threat to federalism, freedom of speech and the Constitution.

Was it possibly an election strategy, a diversionary tactic from the main election issues, some urgency in settling political scores or blocking business competitors, or, to influence some judicial proceedings?

Those familiar with the Save Goa struggle may recall how eventually a roaring tiger was reduced to a puppy on a leash led by professional and business considerations. If land conversions which were stalled by the scrapping of the RP2011 still continue to be pushed forward in 2024, then it calls for a serious introspection by Goans to assess the effectiveness of civil society responses to such destructive laws and policies. Unfortunately, the debate is restricted to nothing beyond statistics on land zoning changes to amplify the threat to Goa’s land and environment, expose political beneficiaries and monstrify some ministers. It is not known whether any participatory soul searching, assessment or evaluation has ever been undertaken by civil society to understand why its interventions to protect Goa’s land and identity, over the last one decade or more, have practically led to nowhere?

There is an interesting quote attributed to Elvis Presley which reads, “Truth is like the sun. You can shut it out for a time, but it ain’t goin’ away.”

To make sense of the noises around a threat to Goa’s land and natural resources, it may be helpful to rewind a little to the past. How the rhetoric of ‘power to the people’ by implementation of the 73rd and 74th Constitution, which had been employed to whip up an emotional frenzy and garner support for the anti-RP 2011 agitation in 2006, was diluted no sooner a new government was in place.

The tune soon changed to defending the government’s right to ‘spatial planning’ and denying the Constitutional right to local bodies. The challengers were co-opted into the formulation of the RP under the same corrupt planning system and structures. The icing on this cake of betrayal was the enacting of ‘The Goa Land Zoning and Building Regulations 2010’, which clipped the power of local bodies in processing land development and construction applications, indirectly denying the right of Gram Sabhas to deliberate on this subject.

Thereafter, it has been merry making as usual for successive TCP ministers and their department. The credit for this should go to none other than the Goan whose ‘good faith’ and ‘something is better than nothing’ mental state has sustained the Save Goa narratives, which beat around the bush without addressing the root cause. The public has submitted to an entertainment of shutting the windows under various sections like 16, 16A, 17D, 17(2) and 39A, while the door for mischief is left wide open by keeping

in force an archaic and obsolete Town and Country Planning Act, 1974 and other correlated laws.

The tears shed and curated debates around the great Goa land grab may not necessarily be above a ‘conflict of interest’. A hotchpotch of political, academic, professional and business interests circulating as ‘people’s movements’ has reduced the sentimental Goan to nothing more than a number for the cameras at public gatherings. Let’s not forget how, in 2008, the village groups protesting against mega housing projects and the influx of migrants in villages were condemned by some ‘bachao’ nobility who defended these massive gated projects as a housing necessity and the rights of Indians as brothers and sisters to settle anywhere. The Save Goa tunes have repeatedly changed from green to red depending on whose political, business and professional interests are served or denied by the government.

The public may hardly be aware about a model framework titled ‘The Goa Development Planning Act’, which was presented to the government in 2010 as an alternative to the antiquated TCP Act, 1974. This proposal was the outcome of several consultations with experts undertaken by a Church body under the guidance of a renowned and experienced Planner, who is also the son of the soil. It attempted to bring the Goa TCP laws to be in consonance with the Constitutional Amendments, and put in place a participatory planning process which includes the Village Panchayats and Municipalities in spatial planning as spelt out in Article 243ZD. The framework was put out in public domain, but for obvious reasons received no response nor mention from concerned civil society forums. Perhaps, it was seen as a threat by a flourishing RTI and PIL industry partnered by politicians, professionals and the builder lobby. It could deny the scope for manipulations within the TCP system to by-pass local self-governance by those in the building industry. The Church is now only needed to supply the crowd for public meetings.

This is not to deny that the crisis around Goa’s land and identity is not real and serious. But the salvation of Goans lies in freeing themselves from a nostalgic stupor of the missionary past and understanding the snares in a mercenary political and economic present. Social work, now social entrepreneurship, is not necessarily about free lunches. With no ethical boundaries set for social activism, such branded ‘public interest’ and ‘people’s movements’ may have an undeclared price tag determined by the market size and an illegible fine print to dodge accountability and transparency.

(The writer was a Counsellor at a Drug Prevention and De-addictionCentre in Goa)

https://www.heraldgoa.in/Edit/Opinions/Divided-We-Walk-Unity-A-Stranger/221837?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR0NNTkf_oGZSQRlovksHx4QqhpXxL_U6kb9o6MdAZNXrn3eQ40ktTyZjXg_aem_AYuNR4GmzsUx3WEvCghamJE7_ts4c2UNArTmxHRdQC2lDHJGsOf6mF3jNOYvYM9fMRLVTMjM8TvucewkqjOcOKuB

When the rich in BJP become secular

 

Lok sabha polls 2024. Fr. Ubaldo blessing BJP candidate Pallavi Dempo