Your unwarranted tirade against the Goan Diaspora has caused a lot of bad blood and heartburn within the Goan community. One can understand your eagerness to restart mining, but why so much ill will and hatred towards a section of our brethren who have no role to play in the stoppage or resumption of this whole business?
In your emotional speech in the Assembly, generously laced with bitterness, you said “Amkam amchea payar ubbe ravunk zai”. When and how has the Goan community in London or elsewhere preventing anyone from standing on their own legs? You have been the Chief Minister of Goa for 17 years. If the mining industry, as stated by you, has indeed helped the common man raise his standard of living, then how come 50% of your constituents still don’t have the basic toilet facilities on account of which they are forced to defecate in the open? During your tenure, billions of dollars worth of mineral ore has been exported – where has all the money gone? Truth is often bitter, but facts do speak for themselves!
Spewing more venom you said, “the khuimtori passport kadtat ani morunk voitat” (It means, they somehow get a passport and go to die somewhere). How many have died? In fact, they are a relatively healthier, wealthier and a happier lot – perhaps because they eat healthier food, drink pure water, breath fresher air, get better health care and work harder for an honest living. Off course, many of those who have migrated do utility jobs (jobs that include maintaining toilets) because they are lacking in skills required for better jobs. But their good work is appreciated and they are decently paid. Every work has dignity and work done with love and honesty is like a prayer which evokes the blessings of God. If you visit the toilets at Ravindra Bhavan in Margao, you will see the difference! At a point in time Goan shippies were either cooks, buttlers, waiters or utility workers. Today my village itself boasts of a dozen ship captains besides other top officers – the cooks and butlers of yester years have invested well in providing quality education to their children. Even our CM’s son is working in the USA and the CM himself goes there to get better.
Goans have always held you in high esteem and the Goan ‘Lawrence or Laxman’ who came running to inquire about your well being when you visited the toilet at London airport is a testimony to this. But you sir, failed to recognise this gesture of love and warmth that comes naturally to Goans and have belittled him. Pratapsingh Rane is not known for loose talk, perhaps your eagerness to please your friends in the mining business got you carried away…
Great men do make mistakes but they also have the courage and character to admit them. None, but we ourselves can free our mind of prejudices!
