Gabriel and Samir,
I happened to be watching last night on the Overseas Service
of BBC- TV an enlightening segment on Iraq where a BBC TV
correspondent was getting the views of average middle class
educated Iraquis on the state of their nation ,about 8 years
after the much revered USA president Mr. G.W. Bush decided
that he must have regime change then and introduced the old
concept of " democracy ". Speaking to a female university
lecturer who said ... ...." Mr. Bush may have had great zeal in
bringing us his western -style democracy..........but he brought
us more pain and suffering. Under Mr Saddam , our former
president who we knew was a military dictator......the poor
people had had enough to eat and low level of medical
care. Now under the patronage and occupation of the
all-powerful USA we have hungry poor and the introduction of
corruption among our own Iraqui officials in the Home and
Defence ministries who charge the common people enormous bribe
money to effect a simple transaction that was speedily done and
bribe-free in Saddam`s regime. If a young man wants to join the
army or the police, for example , he has to be prepared to
pay an entry bribe to concerned officials of the equivalent of
$ 500 (US)."
Now , one may ask me what the above has to do
with Goa ?
Visiting Goa in November 2005 , I was assured by old
residents around Mapusa and Candolim that if a suitably
qualified University graduate wanted to join the Goa State
Police service in the officer cadre he had be prepared to
pay a bribe to the relevant recruiting officers of the
minimum of 2 lakh rupees. Naturally, on appointment to a
suitable post he worked towards recouping his " entry fee"
by extorting from citizens or the constables under him.
Would any police officer at high position in Goa deny
this happens ? The I-G of Goa State police will , of course
, feign ignorance of the situation or any complicity in such
dealings .........but one wonders on hearing of such standard
operating procedures how endemic the corruption that has crept
in from India since 1961 has become in
Goa......................... whether it is under the patronage
of the Congress govt.........who kow-tow the Party High command
in Delhi........or the more innovative goans in Goa who find a
quick way to make a buck.
Samir Kelekar wrote:
Gabriel writes:
How many cases of deaths have not been closed as ‘suicidal’ or ‘accidental’ >in
the annals of Goa’s police records?
Given what is happening today in Goa with Mahanand confessing to 9 murders,
indeed every case of accident and/or suicide in all Goan police stations
in the last 20 years has to be thoroughly looked at again. Who knows --- they
could all be
murders and the lazy Goan police just shut the cases down saying it is
an accident or suicide.
regards,
Samir
