In Goa, after its defeat two and half years ago, the Congress party has still not come out of its shell. In the meantime it lost the general elections and got reduced to a rump of 44 MPs. The Congress faced the fury of the electorate even in its traditional bastion of Salcete reducing the party to a single digit in the House. After two and half years, the present regime has almost become a mirror image of the past government on almost every front, but the difference now is that the present government has no opposition both inside and outside the assembly. The Congress party has surrendered the entire opposition space to an independent MLA also from Salcete. Democracy without opposition is a frightening proposition. Is it that the party is to function only when in power? Is power the only cementing factor? Why should the people take a party seriously if it goes out of circulation when out of power?
The Congress party has not taken a proper stand on behalf of the mining dependents or mining affected. There is no whisper against the non-functioning of the institutions of transparency be it the State Information Commission or the accountability body the Lokayukta. It has no stand on corruption in administration and malgovernance at all levels. The party has not even taken a clear stand on the airport issue an emotive issue in Salcete, though individual leaders from south has been opposing the new airport at Mopa. The party is silent on the governments’ stand on the regional plan and a somersault on the casinos. Drug trade also booms without a whimper.
It is in that context that the return of Luizinho Faleiro as the chief of the Goa Pradesh Committee shall have to be seen. To what extent the party can recover and reorganize itself in the remaining two and half years before the next assembly elections is the challenge before the former chief minister. Though he is seen as part of the old guard, the party had run out of options but has put it’s best foot forward.
Congress problem have become complex with the split on its alliance with the Nationalist Congress Party in Maharashtra. The traditional support base of the party had been in talukas of Salcete, Bardez, Tiswadi and Murmugao due to the merger of the then United Goan Party into the then Congress. Under the alliance with NCP, Bardez and Marmagoa was almost given up to the Nationalist Congress Party for over a decade. The immediate task is to have a proper strategy with the local leaders of the NCP on their entry into the party so that the party gets enough muscle in the traditional strong hold of Salcete, Bardez and Marmagoa. The new GPCC chief shall have to take a call on the independent MLAs whose performance have also caught the imagination of the people. How the GPCC chief shall deal with the other independent MLAs from Salcete supporting the government is worth noting. The public is closely looking at how the new GPCC chief shall deal with the political terrorists of Salcete!
If one goes by the trends of the Lok Sabha election the performance of the Congress party in Salcete has been impressive, despite the non existence of the organization. There is no ideological glue that binds the constituency satraps. The social base has been shrinking due to various schemes brought in by the government which distributes doles to all and sundry. The party has not lent its shoulder for any cause dear to the hearts of Goans leaving the field open to media, activists and non governmental organizations.
Immediate past history from the states show that Congress party has a capacity to bounce back only if its leadership performs well in the opposition. N.T. Ramarao’s Telugu Dessam wiped out the Congress party from its traditional citadel of Andhra Pradesh on the issue of Telugu pride. Y.S. Rajashekahar Reddy as leader of opposition fought back, bringing the party into reckoning and almost creating a cult figure in himself. Siddarammaiah in Karnataka, Harish Rawat in Uttarkhand also put a determined fight against the BJP and brought back the party to power. In states like Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh the party failed throw up any challenge. In fact the party itself is accused of not permitting state level leaders to bloom. Even our Chief Minister after loss of power in 2005 performed extremely well as leader of opposition. It is that role as leader of opposition that caught the imagination of the people. He street fought back to power almost single handedly.
There is no doubt that the main threat to the party comes from its inability to allow poplar leaders to rise from within its ranks. Locally rooted persons could change the prospects if they are given a place of respect and assurance of the tickets for the next assembly elections as against the present situation of patronage.
The task before the new party chief is to market the party to the people with a taint free label. It is imperative that if the party has to do well it has to take up issues dear to hearts of Goans. If the party is unable to put up a stellar performance in the house, the party can certainly put a good performance outside the house. The locally rooted leaders also require a platform to street fight the government.
(The writer is a practicing advocate)
