The past by its very nature is permanent. It is embedded and remains. It has no form or substance that can be uprooted and much less forgotten. And visible eradication of the physical embodiment of the past doesn’t remove it.
LOVE ON DISPLAY ON PORTUGAL DAY: (Before we discuss this further, let us pause to take in a gracious evening hosted by the Consul General of Portugal Dr Maria Isabel de Carvalho Mendonca Raimundo Pereira Coutinho, on Portugal’s National Day. Among the multitude of guests from all walks of life and professions in Goa were elected representatives both from ruling and opposition parties in Goa. The Consul General thanked the people of Goa for their love and affection and her team as well as Portuguese institutions in Goa which act as cultural, academic and institutional bridges between the two countries. And above all, she paid respect to the identity of Goa and Goans. What was displayed was affection and love, both by the hosts and the guests. And it was no surprise. This has always been the Goa that we have grown up in)
The past has many shades, some memorable and enduring and some may not. Ironically mandates are not sought by promising to resurrect or bury the past, but it is quite clear that past narratives that may seem to cause divisions are injected into the social and political narrative, timed to perfection, mainly as a diversionary tactic.
On one hand, a declaration has been made to wipe out signs of Portuguese rule. But what really are these signs? As we have explained in our Saturday edition, a way of life, culture memories and tradition, cannot be “wiped out”. What does one wipe out the heritage of Sao Tome and Fontainhas, the cobbled streets and tiled homes, or the ancient masterful heritage structures?
Also, just in case it was an attempt to isolate one faith purportedly linked to Portuguese culture that too won’t cut the ice because the faith not automatically linked to the culture of those times, was in fact hugely embedded in that society and its culture and also its language.
There are majority community workers scholars, and businessmen living in Portugal for generations. Talks of “removing signs of that past” is likely to cause pain to them too.
Therefore, for what purpose would a leader holding high office juggle with the past, when there is so much of the present that needs to be fixed for Goans?
It may well be a tactic. On one hand signs of history are sought to be removed. On the other hand, a so-called “Revolutionary” organisation will jump in to oppose these statements and reach out to their funders abroad and hood-wink innocent gullible Goans. A friendly opposition will once again be created to minimise the impact of real opposition and split votes.
But one has succeeded in wiping out the ‘signs’ of harmony and love
Goa has never been divided because Goans have not allowed themselves to be. The fabric of harmony existed even before 1961 and continues to be there and growing after that. And that keeps Goa intact and strong.
But we have succeeded in wiping out some ‘signs’ of the Portuguese times like safety
While priorities have been given a backseat, let us do an audit of what we have lost or the “signs” that have been wiped out of safety for instance. During those times, “we” (our forefathers or us depending on how old we are) did not think of shutting their doors or putting locks. Goans went away on holidays for days and months leaving their homes open, with neighbours who were like family keeping an eye.
Today not only are homes locked but there is fear of a robbery or a dacoity or even physical harm during loot. We have had cases of children killing or attempting to kill elders for family property and money. Signs of safety have been wiped out and hatred has come in
Hard-earned ancestral property is forged and transferred in the names of land grabbers and for years and years there’s no hope of getting the property back. In some, new homes and gated complexes have been built.
A leader is elected to get priorities right and to do good to people. That has to be the only focus of governance
One look at Goa’s capital, once the seat of heritage architecture, planning and beauty is a parody of its former self. These signs of competence and efficiency that were the hallmark of the Portuguese administration in Panjim have surely been wiped out with incompetence. Forget Panjim being a Smart City, can you even call it a city or just a chunk of bombed-out roads?
Businesses pay for facilities like sewerage treatment vide their fees and licences. Yet they are not only billed additionally for sewage in the water bills, but raw sewage also flows past their homes as, what people say, is a cruel reminder that no matter what you pay, you will be treated like what floats in the sewage. This is what hurts and one is sure that a government and leader with a heart, will course correct this.
Our fishermen don’t have fish in the sea or money to repair their boats, our farmers are looking at their farms being replaced by concrete, forests are getting burnt, wildlife is shrinking, and our rivers hills and oceans are getting destroyed with each passing day. Surely this is not meant to be destroyed.
Our priorities are now, and we need to address this for our people and for the future of Goa. It is the present and the future that needs attention, not the past.
Can history be wiped out like the world wars, the French Revolution or the Sepoy mutiny
And come to think of it, can history be wiped out? Can we wipe out the two world wars, the rise and fall of Hitler, the French Revolution, the Sepoy Mutiny, the Dandi march or the Revolt of 1857? Shivaji is as much a part of history as Aurangzeb is.
Leadership is about dignity and depth
People look upto elected leaders to lead with dignity and depth, to be a shoulder to always lean on and hope. A leader is a unifier, not a divider who doesn’t allow anyone to fish in troubled waters but lets the clean stream of governance with honesty flow.
Only then will temples of trust be built.