4 March,2012
March 4, 2012
This is how our ministers made Goans look pathetic on national television
Sujay Gupta
Some of us may have seen this. And many of us, thankfully perhaps, missed it. In two separate national television channels last week, Goa’s ministers made a shameful mockery of themselves, their land, the positions they hold and most importantly the dignity of all Goans, by shamelessly defending the infusion of their children in to politics, their education, or the lack of it, and their sudden un-accounted for jump in wealth.
As the half an hour programme on NDTV unfolded (and another one on CNN IBN called the ‘Bad boys of Goa), it must have been jaw dropping entertainment for the rest of the country as Goa was ridiculed in every frame and byte. For an insider and a resident and lover of the land, your blood boiled. Sample these with my apologies for subjecting you to this on a Sunday morning. The only solace is that some of you would have done your bit the previous day towards not getting some of these.
Education Minister Babush Monseratte was asked by the NDTV reporter: Your affidavit shows that you have finished you schooling and then your 12th standard from Mohali. When did you give you exams in Mohali (Punjab)? Babush replied “I’ve given, I’ve given...I’ve also given exams for graduation. So in three months time you may find that I’m a graduate.” And then he laughed and all his hangers on laughed with him, applauded we know what – his sense of black humour or his enormous skill is acquiring degrees instantly. The rage in people is not due to the lack of education but acquiring degrees through suspicious means when you happen to be the education minister of a state.
The next line of questioning brought out even more. Monseratte was asked, “Your wealth and assets have jumped up five times. How do you account for this huge increase in your wealth?” Babush fumbled and stumbled and muttered something incoherently, which seemed like, ‘Ermmm, well it has increased....”, and then in a sudden flash of brilliance said, “My chartered accountant looks into all this, you better ask him.” The NDTV reporter persisted, “Surely you know how your wealth has increased, and there is an IT investigation showing that you received amounts for land conversions?” Babush replied again, “I don’t look into all these things, that is the job of the chartered accountant.”
Next up Churchill Alemao Asked why he was encouraging family raj by bringing baby daughter dearest intro politics and giving her a ticket, Churchill said “ When I was an MP, she used to say ‘daddy daddy, give me a pass to come to parliament.’ My friend, since then she has been interested, not now. May I’m encouraging, but what’s wrong?” When baby daughter dearest was asked on national television why the Congress didn’t find other suitable women candidates but only an Alemao, she turned to her supporters and asked who wanted her to contest and they all shouted in unison “We”. That settled Valanka walked into the night.
Cut to Joaquim Alemao and his reason for bringing Yuri into politics was perhaps the most innovative. He told NDTV, “‘From the age of 14, when daddy (Joaquim) was not at home, he used to do the job. He knows everything. He has done lots of social service.” It’s a pity that Goa didn’t know about this young foot soldier of Joaquim’s, who knew about politics and business and controlled affairs from the age of 14. Daddy’s boy contested as an NCP candidate, as his daddy’s party made room for him in a friendly party, when the family quota was getting a little full. Asked about his properties and increase in wealth, Joaquims answer was simple, “I’m a businessman, not an ordinary man. I have business. Real estate business, other business.” They are surely not ordinary. Not by a long shot. We are ordinary. We work for a living, send our children to school and use our savings to see that they get a good education, we pay our taxes, we don’t attack police stations and burn them and injure policemen, we don’t get caught at airports with huge amounts of cash by customs and get interrogated by the enforcement directorate, we are not under the scanner of an anti mining commission for possibly indulging in blatant illegal mining, we don’t deal with builders asking for their money to be returned for land conversions, which have not happened and most importantly, we don’t sell our souls and our land.
Hopefully, we have done enough this time to get some ordinary people into the assembly. We are saddened, shocked and tired by ruling party ministers who are “not ordinary men”. For a change, we want the extra ordinary out. We want the ordinary in. Can we, for the first time in more than a decade, have some ordinary people, people like us, be our true representatives. In 48 hours we shall know if we have indeed been masters of our own destinies or slaves of compulsion and greed. Yet again!
Sujay Gupta
Some of us may have seen this. And many of us, thankfully perhaps, missed it. In two separate national television channels last week, Goa’s ministers made a shameful mockery of themselves, their land, the positions they hold and most importantly the dignity of all Goans, by shamelessly defending the infusion of their children in to politics, their education, or the lack of it, and their sudden un-accounted for jump in wealth.
As the half an hour programme on NDTV unfolded (and another one on CNN IBN called the ‘Bad boys of Goa), it must have been jaw dropping entertainment for the rest of the country as Goa was ridiculed in every frame and byte. For an insider and a resident and lover of the land, your blood boiled. Sample these with my apologies for subjecting you to this on a Sunday morning. The only solace is that some of you would have done your bit the previous day towards not getting some of these.
Education Minister Babush Monseratte was asked by the NDTV reporter: Your affidavit shows that you have finished you schooling and then your 12th standard from Mohali. When did you give you exams in Mohali (Punjab)? Babush replied “I’ve given, I’ve given...I’ve also given exams for graduation. So in three months time you may find that I’m a graduate.” And then he laughed and all his hangers on laughed with him, applauded we know what – his sense of black humour or his enormous skill is acquiring degrees instantly. The rage in people is not due to the lack of education but acquiring degrees through suspicious means when you happen to be the education minister of a state.
The next line of questioning brought out even more. Monseratte was asked, “Your wealth and assets have jumped up five times. How do you account for this huge increase in your wealth?” Babush fumbled and stumbled and muttered something incoherently, which seemed like, ‘Ermmm, well it has increased....”, and then in a sudden flash of brilliance said, “My chartered accountant looks into all this, you better ask him.” The NDTV reporter persisted, “Surely you know how your wealth has increased, and there is an IT investigation showing that you received amounts for land conversions?” Babush replied again, “I don’t look into all these things, that is the job of the chartered accountant.”
Next up Churchill Alemao Asked why he was encouraging family raj by bringing baby daughter dearest intro politics and giving her a ticket, Churchill said “ When I was an MP, she used to say ‘daddy daddy, give me a pass to come to parliament.’ My friend, since then she has been interested, not now. May I’m encouraging, but what’s wrong?” When baby daughter dearest was asked on national television why the Congress didn’t find other suitable women candidates but only an Alemao, she turned to her supporters and asked who wanted her to contest and they all shouted in unison “We”. That settled Valanka walked into the night.
Cut to Joaquim Alemao and his reason for bringing Yuri into politics was perhaps the most innovative. He told NDTV, “‘From the age of 14, when daddy (Joaquim) was not at home, he used to do the job. He knows everything. He has done lots of social service.” It’s a pity that Goa didn’t know about this young foot soldier of Joaquim’s, who knew about politics and business and controlled affairs from the age of 14. Daddy’s boy contested as an NCP candidate, as his daddy’s party made room for him in a friendly party, when the family quota was getting a little full. Asked about his properties and increase in wealth, Joaquims answer was simple, “I’m a businessman, not an ordinary man. I have business. Real estate business, other business.” They are surely not ordinary. Not by a long shot. We are ordinary. We work for a living, send our children to school and use our savings to see that they get a good education, we pay our taxes, we don’t attack police stations and burn them and injure policemen, we don’t get caught at airports with huge amounts of cash by customs and get interrogated by the enforcement directorate, we are not under the scanner of an anti mining commission for possibly indulging in blatant illegal mining, we don’t deal with builders asking for their money to be returned for land conversions, which have not happened and most importantly, we don’t sell our souls and our land.
Hopefully, we have done enough this time to get some ordinary people into the assembly. We are saddened, shocked and tired by ruling party ministers who are “not ordinary men”. For a change, we want the extra ordinary out. We want the ordinary in. Can we, for the first time in more than a decade, have some ordinary people, people like us, be our true representatives. In 48 hours we shall know if we have indeed been masters of our own destinies or slaves of compulsion and greed. Yet again!
