It is unfortunate dear readers, that we need return to you yet again with another report of a free for all attitude which is getting pervasive in the government. While Mr Manohar Parrikar exercised complete command over all departments and ministers, many in the Parsekar cabinet, including some first time ministers, have made their departments their personal fiefdoms. The Power department is certainly in this shortlist.
As our story on Page 1 clearly exposes, Power Minister Milind Naik has successfully blocked the issuance of final appointment letters to five selected engineers for the post of Executive Engineers in his department, for three months since the Chief Minister over ruled Naik’s noting to keep the appointments in abeyance for several reasons. The Power minster wanted appointments to be held back, earlier cleared by the State Public Service Commission after a due process of selection and interview duly approved by the Chief Minister who wrote on file “There being imminent need of executive engineers, in the department, we may go ahead with the recommendations of the GPSC and appoint the recommended candidates”. Referring to the Power Minister’s reasons for blocking these appointments, because local Assistant Engineers wanted to be promoted, the Chief Minister mentioned that the issue should be looked at independently. With the CM’s sanction, the process of appointments started culminating in the Chief Engineer sending it to the final authority which issues the orders. At this stage the Power minister verbally called for the file and has since then been literally sitting over it, not allowing the appointments of the Executive Engineers to take place.
While each of the selected candidates, all highly qualified professional engineers, whom the department badly needs, are aware (and some of whom have confided to Herald), of the ultimate reason behind the Power minister’s refusal, there is no evidence to state this on record. Let’s suffice to merely state that the Honourable Power Minister has “other interests”. Hopefully those interests are in favour of Goa and for the good of Goa. We can only hope. But even the most laudable of interests – and we aren’t confident to say that they were – do not allow him to block genuine appointments of people selected by the State Public Service Commission and cleared by the Chief Minister.
The department is short of trained professions. The initial vacancy of seven Executive Engineers has now gone up to about 14. The five candidates were selected on November 28, 2014 and the validity of this selection expires on November 28 this year, a little over two weeks from now. The inefficiency of a State stands completely exposed when you see that a government cannot complete the process of appointing five executive engineers for a whole year.
The Chief Minister must also revisit his initial policy of giving a free hand to his ministers to run their departments independently. This freedom is clearly being exploited by some ministers. A Chief Minister who cannot protect the sanctity of his orders and notings has no right to continue in office. If his decisions are overruled by ministers through verbal orders, then it is not Laxmikant Parsekar, but the Chief Minister’s chair and office that become weak. And that is a shame.
Freedom to ministers has become a free for all in the department. The Chief Minister must set an example and seek an explanation from the Chief Secretary why the appointment letters of these engineers have not been issued. They need to be accountable too because they have acted on the Power Minister’s verbal instructions but not carried out the Chief Minister’s written instructions.
Irrespective of Herald’s tough stand on different decisions of the Chief Minister, your newspaper respects the Chief Minister’s office and chair, more than the individual who occupies it, because that office and chair does not belong to any individual or party but to the State of Goa and its people. And that office cannot be insulted by anyone, least of all the Power Minister of the State, who should not be given any power to abuse any office, or his State.
