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Stage Play: ON THE HOLY TRAIL
Staged By: The Mustard Seed Art Company
Where: Kala Academy - Mini Open-air Auditorium
When: Dec 20 & 21, 2007 @ 7pm
Read a Review at:
http://lists.goanet.org/pipermail/goanet-goanet.org/2007-December/066558.html
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The root cause of Goa's critical state of health is unhesitatingly a
corruption and precipitous fall in the moral standards of our politics and
public life. Today on issues like Regional Plan, SEZ, Food Park, IT Park,
Land Acquisition, IFFI, etc every single Goan is washing leaders of ruling
congress party of Goa without even applying soaps!
Knowing this fully well, the shameless peddlers of Congress Party (CP) and
their followers in Goa are still traversing length and breadth of Goa
propagating the "gospel" of venal corruption. Statements and pronouncements
like "corruption is preferable to communalism", "corruption is lesser evil
than communalism", "communalism is infinitely worse than corruption",
"corruption is reversible while communalism causes irreversible damages",
"corruption is not a public issue", "corruption cases against CP leaders are
nothing but political vendetta" are ringing loud in the newspapers and
electronic media almost every day. So much so that even some of the educated
thinkers appears to be working over time to sanctify corruption and give
respectability to CP leaders and their affiliates, who are facing charges of
bribery, criminal misconduct and misappropriation of public funds.
Afflicted by this virus and emboldened by the weakness and meekness of our
judicial process, several other political entities have entered this
bandwagon and are flooding the media. These statements sanctifying
corruption and giving certificates to its avid practitioners cannot be
allowed to go unchallenged and unquestioned. While the ills of communalism
are known and should be countered effectively, it need to be realized that
corruption is like AIDS which sucks up and destroys the basic value system
on which a society is founded and has no cure if allowed to go beyond a
certain stage. Furthermore, unbridled corruption in government and public
life could be a major causative factor in instigating and inflaming communal
passions and disturbances. Besides, corruption, by slowing down economic
development and accelerating poverty, is a major factor in causing and
sustaining social inequalities and tensions.
Turning to economic development, corrupt practices have proved highly
detrimental in achieving modernization ideals. Its prevalence has raised
strong obstacles and inhibitions to development. It has decreased respect
for and allegiance for the government and its institutions. It has even
promoted irrationality in planning and has limited the horizons of plans.
The corruption being spurred by fragmentation of loyalties has acted against
efforts to consolidate Goa.
Goa, ranking 3rd among the most corrupt states in India, has witnessed the
dangers of collapsing politically and economically on many occasions only
for allowing corruption to survive and sustain itself in the system of
governance. Besides this, corrupt politicians, more typically congress
leaders, under pretext of secularism have very shrewdly injected, within
Goa's social fabric, conflicts between individualism vs. communalism, greed
vs. sharing, formal vs. informal dealings, the willingness to view life as
dispensable vs. our love for humanity, and religion vs. spirituality. The
net result of all these implanted conflicts are an irreversible multiple
damages within the peace loving communities of Goa. History of Goa very
clearly says that "CP ruled and is ruling Goa without a backbone - All that
CP knows is corruptions and nothing else - It is also equally surprising to
see CP in Goa is bending twice before Karnataka lady whose intention is to
sell Goa for personal monitory gains".
Now let's have a closer look on other aspects of corruption. Corruption has
resulted in undermining Macroeconomic stability due to the loss of
government revenue, excessive spending and leakages. It has increased the
costs of doing business and small firms have started bearing a
disproportionately large share of these costs - small entrepreneurs are
badly affected. It has also compromised on pollution norms pushing the
environment in danger. The poor community has already started suffering the
most since they are getting to low quality public goods and services,
leaving no "exit" options. There is a negative correlation between the level
of corruption and the level of investment in the economy. This has severely
constrained economic growth and employment generation. Large-scale
corruption has also been instrumental in causing death and destruction like
illicit liquor tragedies, accidents due to consumption of drugs, opium,
ganja, heroin, etc. What is worse, by spawning inequity and injustice,
corruption has proved to be an underlying cause for the growth of terrorism
and militancy in peaceful Goa!
Corruption is the single major factor in keeping Goa poor and backward
despite having the best of natural and human resources. It is a major
destabilizing factor in politics and economics. If the modern day
"advocates" of corruption are allowed to have their way, they may as well
wind up the Indian judiciary and scrap all the laws and statutes that help
in punishing the corrupt. By pronouncing that "cases against XYZ of CP in
Goa are politically motivated", they are casting aspersions on the
independence and integrity of India's higher judiciary.
They are also insulting the intelligent, and indeed mocking at the common
man who is carrying the burden of "the loot of the public exchequer" on his
frail and slender shoulders. In fact it is a crude attempt to hoodwink the
people and institutions of Goa and to protect the venal elements that have
brought our Goa to such a sorry pass.
Communalism is no doubt a scourge and a menace that needs to be combated
with all our might. But by no stretch of the imagination could this be made
into a smokescreen for justifying corruption at high places, which is far
more venal and debilitating to Goa and the nation and its civil society.
Considering all corrupt practices taking shape in Goa, Goan must know that
Goa is surely a sinking ship under the captaincy of congress party and its
right time to jump out by getting away with "the lesser of two evils" or
"the evil of two lesser" theory and or else we will sink our Goa to point of
no return. Goans must also realize the innate wisdoms of our corrupt
congress politicians and must surely reject attempts by political busybodies
to "dry-clean" corruption using communalism as the "washing agent"
Dr. U. G. Barad
Margao - Goa
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Spread the Christmas Cheer, even when you're not here!
Send classic greetings to your loved ones in Goa.
EXPRESSIONS - 2007 Christmas Hamper
Visit http://www.goa-world.com/expressions/xmas/
Or e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
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