MARGAO: The government decision to have a common cadre for panchayat has been hailed by most people though some did caution it being misused and politicised and Aam Aadmi Party Goa Convener Elvis Gomes termed it as an attempt by the government to strangulate the local self governing body.
“The government is preparing grounds to terrorise panchayats with the threat of transfers instead of strengthening the functioning of the panchayat by giving them more financial powers as they presently have limited powers,” he said.
He cautioned that the common cadre will meet the same fate as common cadre of engineers in municipalities and instead suggested that the functioning of the panchayat staff needs to be changed.
“This is totally against the spirit of decentralisation and the government appears to be more interested in centralising all powers to itself,” he said asking who would be authority implementing the common cadre.
United Goans Democratic Party leader Radharao Gracias said there are pros and cons and said the universal complaint was that clerks and peons manipulate things at the panchayat because they cannot be transferred and hence a transfer may result in people getting better service.
However, he also warned of political transfers just to harass the employee or the panchayat. “In any case the transfers should be within the block or taluka and actually common cadre should be implemented at municipalities first because the major problem is there,” he said.
Former sarpanch of Paroda Gabriel Fernandes said this was a long overdue decision and welcomed it as a better late than never as common cadre will clear a lot of problems faced by the panchayats.
Former sarpanch of Curtorim Santan Fernandes while welcoming the decision said the government should pay the salaries of the staff. “The panchayat funds will be drained off if they have to pay the salaries of senior clerks. This is why why the government should pay the salaries of all the panchayat members,” he said pointing out that Curtorim panchayat pays the staff through its own funds.
Royla Fernandes former Benaulim sarpanch recalled that the Salcete Forum had made this demand in 2012. “This common cadre was necessary but what is more important is that transfers should be executed and therein lies the test of the decision,” she said.
Iris Passanha from Cavelossim, however, termed it as a “ridiculous” decision. “The Secretaries and talathis cannot work and it is this staff that keeps the panchayat functioning,” he said adding that transferring the staff would amount to harassing the people besides causing hardships to the staff who will have to travel distances.
Freddy Travasso from Sao Jose de Areal said it was a good move as the staff tended to dominate anything and everything in the panchayat. “However the staff should not be transferred to another district but it should be within the district,” he said.
John Douglas Coutinho, who is the chairman of the Chandor-Cavorim Garbage Management Committee, welcomed the decision saying it was much needed. “The staff had grown to think that they are more important than the elected panchayat members and that was the cause of corruption,” he said.
Aquem Baixo Panchayat sarpanch Siddesh Bhagat said it was a much required stem as staff tend to be arrogant and negligent in their work because they are emboldened by the fact that they cannot be transferred.
