Death in the Midst of Victory

“Death be not proud….. for, those, whom thou think’st thou dost overthrow, die not”

                                                                                -John Donne

Goa woke up, 21^st March 2012, shocked and sad. The people may have had different views about him. To some a hero, to others a controversial figure, but  to none a villain. He walked tall in stature with an air of dignity and Goan pride. A man of integrity, uncompromising in his idealism and love for Goa. He walked a life long path of resistance and struggle only to die with his boots on just when a people, awaiting a huge change, had placed him on the pedestal of power. Death be not proud, as poet John Donne wrote in his immortal poem. Death may have physically snatched Matanhy Saldanha from us but his spirit and his idealism will live on in the land he loved.

I first heard of Matanhy when studying at St. Xavier’s, Mapusa. A senior girl student had met him at a camp in Pilar. She was so impressed by him that she insisted I must meet him. He was a handsome young man who loved social service and Goa. And she loved his idealism. I still have vivid memories of the animated description without a trace of romance. I wanted to see him but never did at that time.

The next I heard of him was when a resource person at a leadership seminar in my village, Aldona, described a factual situation at the ferry points at Cortalim and Agasaim, during construction of the Zuari bridge, when people were stranded for hours one day, there being no diesel to run the ferries. While everyone was either hopefully waiting for some solution or shouting or cursing, there arrived one dashing young man, who studied the situation and acted to successfully solve the problem. The man who rose to the occasion, we were told, was Matanhy.

These were two firsthand accounts, from persons I knew, which predisposed me favourably towards Matanhy, who was to emerge as a leader of various people’s movements in  Goa. The rest is history of social activism and political calls, strong resistance and long struggles: against destruction of sand dunes, against the polluting effluents from the Zuari Agro Chemicals Ltd., in support of traditional fishermen and other occupations, and so many other causes. He was a pioneer in awakening the people to protect the ecology of Goa. From small beginnings he moved to the larger causes: Konkani as official language, special status for Goa, realignment of the Konkan Railway route, protection of the Khazan land and forests, agitation against   big polluting industries that were coming up in Cortalim and Ponda, opposition to special economic zones, restoring control of the Dabolim airport to civil authorities, etc. He did not achieve total success in these struggles, but did make many changes possible, which, if not for people’s movements, would not have taken place. His biggest contribution was the inspiration and example of leading from the front. Today we have so much of activism for green and clean Goa.

His political career was slow and steady. He did not make the mark till ten years back though his political moves began thirty years ago in the early 1980s with the founding of Gomant Lok Pokx.  His fledgling party received a boost when the late Erasmo de Sequeira joined it in 1989. But it never made an entry into the Legislative Assembly. An honest man to the core, he was a misfit in the UGDP, which he joined and on which party’s ticket he was elected MLA in 2002. His resignation from the UGDP was a relief not only to him but to others who believed in his integrity. But joining the Bharatiya  Janata Party was a move that triggered many thoughtful questions as well as shocking expressions. Why had he to make such an about turn: from championing regional parties to joining a national party? from a secular agenda to a party with a saffron tilt? and more important, from being  a naturally left inclined liberal to being a member of a right leaning party?

The answer, I think, was Goa, Goa and only Goa. Having been in touch with the people, and sensitive to their silent yearning for change, he took the plunge. How long should the people continue to vote for a party so insensitive to their pride and deeper longings? How long should the minorities, specially the Catholics, continue supporting the so called secular party candidates without catholic character? The defining line came from Matanhy: It is better to live in hope than die in fear. He gave hope to many. He died fearless.

I remember the incident at the Zuari river ferry crossing in the 1970s. Much, much water has flown under the bridge as many millions have crossed over it. The gap between North and South has been bridged. The deficit of confidence and trust between communities has been reduced. It will be good for Goa to carry on the mission of Matanhy Saldanha: to save Goa, the land and the people. May his spirit be with us to save the soul of Goa.

Published in The Navhind Times, Panorama 25.03.2012  

The Future Congress Party

It is not in the stars to hold our destiny but in ourselves, wrote William Shakespeare. But many a time while introspecting, we tend to blame not just the stars but every possible person or factor but ourselves. Our Congress politicians have started this exercise after a week of shocked silence. They don’t seem to have grown any wiser, judged from the outbursts, specially of the defeated candidates. From the electronic voting machines to the priests of the Catholic Church, the explanations are as numerous as they are humorous. To the comic relief of the optimist and the utter disgust of the pessimist in us.

The blame game on public display is more cool and enjoyable now than was the uttering and muttering before the elections in a tense and heated atmosphere. But as citizens concerned about the future of Goa and democracy, we need to worry. Not because the future is not safe with the  Bharatiya  Janata Party in power but because the onus of a bright and better future for Goa is not only on the shoulders of the ruling party but in the voice of the opposition. The discordant notes of the erstwhile coalition government have given way to the strong voice of the leader of the new government. It has to be matched by an equally strong chorus of the opposition, which has been reduced to 22.5% in a house of forty. The last time when there was change in 1980, the until then ruling Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party had been reduced  to a humble 23.33% presence in a house of thirty.

What is lacking in numbers can be made up by quality. One man can make the difference! Indeed, the man who made the difference in the last assembly is heading the government  today. Will the Congress learn a lesson from him? It would be good to remember the history chapter of 1980 before I proceed. The MGP lost miserably after ruling the Union Territory of Goa, Daman and Diu. It was a tidal wave for the Congress which swallowed the then Chief Minister Sashikala Kakodkar in her bastion of  Bicholim and salvaged only seven seats for the party. The gentle and mild Ramakant Khalap was leading  the legislative wing when the  defeated Party President  Kakodkar decided to merge the MGP with the ruling Congress. Five MGP legislators joined her. The opposition was decimated. And yet, two MLAs led by Khalap kept the MGP flag alive by resisting the merger. Khalap became a veritable lion. It is another matter that now he has been reduced to a lamb after joining the Congress.  The two member MGP rose within ten years to win eighteen seats in the first post statehood election in 1989. And it formed a short-lived coalition government with Congress defectors in 1990, with Churchill Alemao stabbing the Congress within four months of being elected as MLA for the first time. The MGP never came back to power by itself since then, and the musical or rather non-musical chairs of defections became the order or rather the disorder of the day for the next eighteen years. 

A new chapter has now begun with the BJP attaining absolute majority, even without its alliance partners. Hopefully, it signals the end of ‘defection raj’. The massive mandate given by the people of Goa has to be respected in normal circumstances. The Congress has to play the role of a dignified and responsible opposition. The party must now grow as an opposition, and from the rank of an opposition to a viable future alternative ruling regime. No short cuts. The voters have rejected the rulers in the government and not just the party. This is obvious as eight out of twelve cabinet ministers have been defeated and two ministers elected with reduced margins. The only saving grace has been Digambar Kamat, the former Chief Minister, who was more of a coordinator with his good nature. Any way, he was never allowed to function as CM by the contradictions in his own cabinet. His present silence is his best contribution in the post election scenario just as his willingness to listen and attempt to respond to diverse demands, albeit unsuccessfully, may be considered his best point as CM.

Some defeated Congress politicians, it appears, are using their lobbies to retain as much power as possible either through proxy in the legislative wing or by capturing the organizational set-up. Those who wish the Congress well in future would want none of these to succeed. It will be in the best interest of the Congress and of Goa to have a combination of clean veterans and fresh faces, with potential for effective long term leadership, to be in the vanguard. To watch and pray, not play and prey on. To work out win-win solutions for Goa and people’s candidates for the future, not rework on ‘winnable’ candidates of the past. To inculcate values in the system and reward loyalty, not put premium on corruption and defection. To build a service oriented organization with service minded cadre. 

The verdict is for change in government, yes, but also for change within the party. Remember the words of the French philosopher, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin: The future belongs to those who give the next generation reason for hope.

Published in The Navhind Times, Panorama 18.03.2012  

The Third Post-Liberation Era

Broadly speaking, it is now going to be Goa’s third political era since liberation fifty years ago. How long and distinctive it will be is yet to be seen. But the electorate, that gave the change driven verdict on March 3, 2012, expects a more decisive new order than just a normal change in government from one party to another. To deny or deprive Goa of a paradigm shift will amount to betrayal of the watershed verdict.

Before pointing out the aspirations of the people for the third era, let me summarize the first two eras. The first era started with the results of the first general election on December 9, 1963. The issue of Goa’s merger with Maharashtra dominated the agenda. The victory of the pro-merger Maharashtrawadi Gomantak party over the pro-Goa United Goans party brought the Goan identity issue to the centre, eclipsing all other issues. The historical Opinion Poll settled the issue in favour of Goa’s separate identity in 1967. However, the MGP was returned to power in the subsequent elections of 1967, 1972 and 1977 till a historic verdict for change brought the Congress party to power in the beginning of 1980. The first era was also characterised by the strong and charismatic leadership of Dayanand Bandodkar  and Dr. Jack de Sequeira, the likes of whom have not been seen in the years that followed.

The second era began with the Congress government taking over in 1980 and ruling Goa for 32 years except for two rather brief periods in 1990 and 2000-2005. The first break was caused by Congress defectors combining with MGP, and the second by Congress defectors colluding with BJP, followed by a fractured verdict when the Bharatiya Janata Party assumed power. During this long period we had the language issue settled after a powerful agitation, followed immediately by statehood for Goa in 1987.

Political instability caused by defections and manipulations became the order of the day ever since the first post-statehood election in 1989.  The BJP made its first appearance in the Goa Assembly in 1994 riding piggy back on the MGP. The decline of regional parties, which began with the 1977 elections after the merger of United Goans in the Congress, was accelerated by the rise of BJP at the cost of MGP in the 1990’s. The second era had begun well with development as the motto but ended with the people’s disgust over corruption, personal power centres becoming ‘family raj’ extensions, regional plans becoming ‘sale plans’ for construction lobbies from outside Goa, and local leadership becoming impotent before the central emissaries from Delhi but arrogant with our own people. The people’s disgust was displayed in the results of the March 2012 election.

The third political era has now begun with a massive mandate to the BJP led alliance. The future of this era will depend on how the regime responds to the people’s aspirations. There could be three outcomes. The first outcome could be caused by the new regime playing the same old games: defections and manipulations. This will mean nipping the third era in the bud and continuation of the same old ways under a new garb. This, I think, will not happen.

The second setting could be the BJP going back to its original ideology, and sticking to it come what may, losing its new broad base, forcing the new adherents to go back to the old thinking and the discarded politicians, much to the delight of the latter. This, I hope, will not happen.

The real challenge lies in the third setting. And this, I pray, will happen: that the BJP will reinvent itself to face the diversity loving people who have gravitated towards it, give a new orientation to its cadres to reciprocate the trust that traditionally non-BJP voters have vested in them, positively interact with all citizens, come out with an inclusive and transparent agenda, and lead the people towards a new Goa. The Goa of our common dreams, where our land belongs to us, our Konkani identity is preserved, where environment friendly industry prospers, where education prepares our children for an increasingly challenging future, where nature takes precedence over development, and where all communities celebrate life together as they have always done.

We expect the new government, led by an able Chief Minister, to listen to the people. Let them have a say in their towns and villages. Our CM will do well to remember the words of Alain Chartier: “Nothing is more dangerous than an idea when it is the only one you have.”

Published in The Navhind Times, Panorama 11.03.2012  

The Day After Elections

We are on the day after elections, waiting for the results the day after tomorrow. A day of relaxation for those who have been in the dust and din of electioneering. A day of anxious waiting for those who are at the centre of the political spectrum. Our choices and our political fate for next five years are sealed in the ballot boxes. But our historical destiny is still in our hands, whatever the results may be.

Does it sound contradictory to say our political fate was determined yesterday but not our long term destiny?  Not to me. There has been a deep undercurrent for change but the choice was limited by existing parties, political permutations, problems and personalities. In many cases we had to choose between the devil and the deep sea. But the political leaders that the election results throw up will also be limited by the five year tenure of office. Limited changes will come about with some new faces but many same old faces. The new legislators and ministers are not expected to be angels, whether we have voted for them or not. But whoever they are, they must be kept in check by people’s power. We will have to be ever vigilant, our own watchdogs. Our people’s movements will have to carry on, even though the election results may disappoint those leading them.

Some of the indicators of hope for Goa were seen in the election gone by. Like the emergence of individuals ready to fight the system despite several hindrances. Like independents of repute supported by various parties against well entrenched power centres: Nirmala Sawant and Avertano Furtado. Like the rise of independents even without party support due to actual work carried out in the past: Rohan Khaunte. Like the inspiring innovation from campaigning to awakening: Bismarque Dias. The decline of regional parties which contested a small number of seats and the extension of party tickets to family members of some politicians were two of the many disappointing indicators.

As long as we remain awake and keep vociferously demanding, and as long as we applaud the right and condemn the wrong, our destiny will be in our hands in spite of our political fate for the time being. If on the other hand, we are satisfied with the new set of rulers and stop being vigilant, it could be the beginning of the end in various ways: from democracy to oligarchy of few families, from secular co-existence to religious bigotry and communalism, from green Goa to desert Goa, from a way of life that has evolved over the ages to a culture that is enforced, from a rich diversity to a monotonous uniformity, from the current swimming in corruption to the ultimate drowning.

We must endorse what is good for Goa and resist what is harmful. This election was only another battle, albeit an important one. The war for Goa will continue. Let us keep telling our new representatives that law and justice, proper education, good healthcare, sufficient water and energy for homes, agriculture and industry, good roads and waterways, healthy tourism and work opportunities are the good things we want. The bad elements we need to fight are drugs and alcoholism that are destroying our youth and families, sex tourism and paedophilia, goondaism, concretization and destruction of ecology, and of course the all pervasive corruption. Human life and human rights are to be protected at any cost. Development should not result in destruction of nature. Our way of life in harmony with nature has to continue. Our diversity of cultures must be preserved. These priorities will make or mar our future, and therefore can’t be left in the hands of a few leaders elected for a limited period.

It is apt to quote Oliver Wendell Holmes: “I find the great thing in this world is not so much where we stand, as in what direction we are moving”. Destiny is a higher calling. Power is derived from the constitution and from “we the people”. The exercise of this power is an ongoing process. Every day, every month, every year.

 Published in The Navhind Times, Panorama 04.03.2012