There is a word in the English language called gravitas which encompasses dignity, seriousness, solemnity and above all sobriety. Those in high positions to which they are elected or selected, especially ministers in a government, must carry this fine ingredient called gravitas and season their speech deportment and ministerial behaviour with it.
Goa’s Fisheries and Water Resources Minister Vinod Palyekar, a political giant killer better known for his melodious classical voice, has propelled himself into news columns, not quite for game changing decisions in his departments but quite honestly, causing affair degree of embarrassment to his party Goa Forward and a more than a bit of irritation to the Chief Minister.
Though neither the Chief Minister or TCP minister and Goa Forward President Vijai Sardesai have expressed anything officially, what appears to have not gone down well with them is the manner in which minister Palyekar, went after the Director Fisheries Sharmila Monteiro, an officer known for her integrity, and asked for her suspension on grounds of not being able to distribute Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) cards to fishermen on time.
Insiders in government believe that rather than investigate the reasons for the delay in the issuance of cards, (most fishermen do not have Aadhaar cards, against which RFID cards are issued), suspension was asked for, by the minister, by rejecting her reply to the show-cause notice. The issue at hand is not whether the Director failed to get this task done but whether the minister should have paused, done due diligence and then decided if her inactions, if any, warranted a suspension, taking into account the Director’s long stint in the department.
What is important here is that contrary to the scepticism which surrounds the actions of most in government and politics, the action on the Fisheries director was received with a fair bit of annoyance, especially in South Goa, where she and her family is well known.
What was apparently out of order for the minister was the manner in which he handled the episode where he attempted to show that he was willing to clean up the entire bureaucracy to enforce efficiency. But the loose cannon surely misfired.
Palyekar has had some other run-ins as well. He recently declared that his life was under threat from drug cartels and that he was being followed on his morning walk. The Chief Minister said that it may be the minster’s perception. Sardesai did ask the government to take the “threat” seriously but he also added that a police committee was equipped to look into this.
While this is no attempt to single out a first time minister, who along with the other Goa Forward Minister Jayesh Salgaocar, are learning the ropes, a sense of direction in the minister’s conduct must be visible and inculcated.
Palyekar’s war on drugs is commendable, but he is also the Fisheries and Water Resources minister. Some of the promises like ensuring subsidised good quality fish reaches Goans, the establishment of a world class cold chain to store fish which will really help fishermen and issues concerning ramponnkars as well as trawlers, must be looked into.
But Palyekar is not the only one who has his work cut out. Every minister must make delivery the leitmotif of governance including the dyed-in-the-wool seniors like Sudin Dhavalikar. Departments like health, power, IT and industry and transport have to deliver growth while TCP, agriculture, panchayats and environment ministers have to ensure that farms, lands, comunidade structures, forests and our beaches are protected.
For starters this needs leadership with gravitas.
