28 Apr 2022 | 04:52am IST
A bit more transparency please
The tweets by an anonymous employee of the Electricity Department were surprising and appreciated. Now should other government departments, especially utility service providers use social media more vigorously to address public grievances
Team Café
It was a series of tweets that surprised
everyone in the State. An anonymous
officer of the Electricity department expressed his frustration at the
disruption in the supply of electricity in the state due to thunderstorms and
fierce winds that had snapped power lines and caused disruptions. In a series
of tweets now deleted, he bemoaned the sad state of affairs and said his mobile
phone and laptop would die because he was suffering the same fate as the rest
of the population. The prompt and sympathetic response begs the question why
should other government departments, especially the utility services providers
use social media more vigorously to address public grievances.
Stephen Rodrigues from Porvorim said he
chanced upon the tweets by the employee in the Electricity Department and said
he was pleasantly surprised to see the quick responses. He said “You don’t
usually see the government departments admitting that there was a problem. It
would be nice if the other departments get more interactive with their
consumers, us. There has to be greater transparency. We as the voter and
consumer need to know what is happening. I hope this is the start of greater
transparency by the government.”
For Agnes Pinto, a resident from Vasco, this was a positive
development. She said “I am all for departments making use of technology. When
there is technology why not use it and spread the news. Because whenever you
call the utility service people, they will never respond.” Poonam Ribo who runs
a business in the state was of the opinion that to be in connection with the
public could never be a bad idea. She said “Public grievances should be a
matter of priority and having someone addressing it is such a relief. Having
said that, it should be kept professional and one should not fall in the trap
of trolls”. Pertinent point.
Marius Fernandes felt it was a welcome move by the electricity
department and it was encouraging they are keeping with the time. He said
“Social media is here to stay and it will be very helpful for customers and
like that all departments move to social media so we as customers can interact
directly with grievances and all to share the good news.”
Moses Pinto speaking from Paris said “ With the Grievance
Redressal legislation already in place and notified by the State Government, it
is well presumed that grievances have to be addressed by that specific system.
Engaging consumers on Twitter is merely an extension of that ideal which a
democratic form of Government always strives to uphold. Perhaps the adaptation
to twitter by the Electricity Department is a little too late now, especially
since Elon Musk recently acquired twitter.inc and has vowed to ensure lesser
moderation of the tweets and increase free speech on the social media platform.
Our Goans are notorious to belch out free speech especially on a hot summer
evening when the electricity supply goes out. So, it will be interesting to
visit the Twitter profile page of the GED and read the colourful words being
used to refer to consumer's grievances”.
Roussel de Miranda was of the opinion that it would be excellent
if government departments could connect with the public. He said “I feel all
the departments should interact with the public. Many issues can get instant
resolution through this kind of interaction”.
The
people have made their voice heard, it is now up to the government of the state
to do what it has to do.
