15 Jan 2022  |   07:35am IST

Do not sell your vote, do not let it be trading currency for bad politicians

Do politicians who jump parties do it for the love of Goa? Or only for themselves and their families
Do not sell your vote, do not let it be trading currency  for bad politicians

What is the difference between the ordinary thief and a political thief

The ordinary thief steals your money, your bag, your watch and your jewelry,’

But the political thief steals your future, your career, your education, your health and your business

The hilarious part is that the ordinary thief will choose whom to rob,

But YOU are the one who chose the political thief to rob you

Because we choose them, we vote them!

We blindly say we are not blind, who is deceiving who

The hilarious part of the whole issue is that we will fight to defend and protect our belongings from the ordinary thief,

But we fight each other to defend and protect the political thief

Thugs will be fighting themselves to protect those that are stealing our career, stealing our joy, stealing our health, stealing our success

WHAT A SHAME. What a travesty

It calls for us to think and think deep- A Viral Video circulated worldwide,

 

Every Goan preparing to press the button on the voting machine for their future will know that every word of this rings true. But will it make a difference? For those who (and Herald is saying this openly) accept money from politicians either to vote or for that matter all their bills and expenses covered for the entire term, it’s time to think.

For heaven’s and Goa’s sake, do not sell your vote

When political parties are opting for winnability over credibility, power over integrity, it is up to the voter to decide if they want the cash doles given by candidates and parties or not. That is a choice that each family or voter must make according to their conscience. However, for heavens and Goa’s sake do not sell your vote. Do you want unscrupulous politicians for whom election is a business to buy your votes and trade them in the open market for power?

The money or largesse given by politicians is from the money they loot from you. But once your vote is received, they play with your future, your children’s future your career, your education, your health, and your business. And how do they do it., Simply by keeping you away from governance. For five years, the system is held tightly and manipulated by deal-making politicians. There will be no thought given by leaders who have paid their way to power, to think about schemes and plans for your growth and development. And why is that so? Because the power of your vote has been bought.

The biggest tragedy of any sale of votes is that it makes the [politicians more powerful than the voter. It makes him or her think that all they must do at the end of five years is pay. If your vote is simply traded, your vote loses its true value, as the most powerful tool of democracy. Will you let that tool be blunted by greed?

At the core of this is credibility and integrity, FAR MORE IMPORTANT THAN WINNABILITY

Goans were always very proud people. And people of principles and honour, for them a word given was a word of honour. Leaders of yesteryears also knew that a promise made, however, small had t be kept. And politicians then were chosen because they were people of integrity. Integrity and credibility were given. Unlike now, you didn’t have to search for it or demand it in your leaders.

And credibility cannot be bought. Winnability can. But credibility is priceless and hence more valuable.

When people get votes from one party and defect to another party in the same Assembly term without going back t the people, its plain and simple cheating. But this cheating has not only been made into an art of trickery but the shameless political system as it exists today seems to justify it. Do people stop to think about what this means? It’s like taking your vote given by you in good faith for the party or ideals the candidate represents and then misusing that vote by going across and joining the opposite side against whom your people have voted. This is worse than betrayal. This is like stabbing you in the back.

Can these people ever find a place as candidates again of any party? Can they be trusted to even stand for electrons and come before the people? Do they have the right to seek votes after misusing them to such an extent that it hurts?

Most importantly, if politics of credibility must return to Goa, then people must choose credible over winnable

Ground-level surveys of different political parties may tell you who has the best chance of winning. But the way votes are sought and bought hides the true picture of who the right candidate should be. Educated, professional people, with ethics and morality, and integrity will carry these values to the Assembly. Those who have changed parties without going to the people are the lowest rung of bad politics. They should be shunned with absolute contempt and any party even trying to do any business with defector MLAs should be rejected

And more the number of MLAs in the Assembly, with these value systems, the more credible the executive and legislative pillars of our democracy will be

Anyone can win at any cost, but not at the cost of Goa

Do the people who jump from party to party as they are doing now (BJP MLAs jumping to the Congress and so on) do it for Goa or for themselves and their families. The answer is clear. Those who jump do so for selfish interests and neither for development, progress nor for the good of Goa. When they ask for jobs for the youth, what they really mean to say is that they will get a quota of jobs which they can pass it on to their local supporters who in turn will be their vote banks. They may win from an opposition party ticket but will jump to a ruling party for positions and power. Where are the people in this? Nowhere

Goa has always been about simple people who love their land. Let it stay that way

What are elections for? It is to choose representatives who will represent you in the Assembly. You the people. But if they do NOT have the same values, principles, beliefs, and the true love for Goa that you do, then can they deserve to be called your representatives? That is why you have no choice but to choose credible people who love Goa and will make decisions to protect and keep Goa the way she always was.

Goa is a beautiful miracle of God that defeats darkness and spreads light. Your decision to vote for credibility and for the right people will defeat the darkness that has crept into our political system. If you do not allow a political thief to rob you, this will surely happen.

IDhar UDHAR

Idhar Udhar