PANJIM: The rejected Person of Goan Origin (POGO) Bill, 2022 is throwing up more surprises and controversies. It is now learnt that two versions (version 2 and 3, see box) of the draft bill were sent by the POGO backing party to none other than the Aldona MLA and former Advocate General Carlos Alvares Ferreira.
Revolutionary Goans Party (RGP) has claimed that it referred the draft Bill to various legal experts including Adv Ferreira, who he added had been helping them in various legal matters.
The party in a statement said, “We had received 100 per cent help from him and he had told us about the shortcomings in the Bill. We don’t look at him (Ferreira) as MLA but as our friend and Goa lover for our help.”
Adv Ferreira confirmed that he did work on the revised version of the bill that the party used during its election campaign, which had the misleading and unconstitutional hoodwinking clause that those born in (and/or their parents and grandparents were) and were Indian citizens post liberation, “irrespective of nationality or passport they hold currently.”
It is now clear that the POGO party went to the elections promising POGO benefits even to foreigner Goans, even though this is blatantly unconstitutional.
Much after the elections, (when Adv Ferreira was already a Congress MLA) he made “extensive corrections”. Herald has independently learnt that the lines “irrespective of nationality or passport they hold currently”, taken off, and the words “Subject to the Constitution of India and other laws in force” added.
Speaking to Herald, late Sunday evening, Adv Ferreira said, “In June 2022, I was given a draft bill having six clauses. I made extensive corrections to it and sent it back. But a week later (on June 26) I received another draft with 12 clauses. I told them that one of the clauses was missing and asked for a complete Bill. I received it on the same day with 22 clauses. I had discussions on this matter but due to time constraints I was unable to scrutinise it and offer my comments,” he said.
Five days later, without waiting for Adv Ferreira’s vetting and comments on the last and latest draft, RG presented the draft POGO Bill to the Goa Legislature Department with 21 clauses.
But the final bill presented in the House which the Chief Minister Pramod Sawant called “unconstitutional”, was totally silent on specifying that only Indian citizens are eligible to come under the definition of POGO and the phrase “subject to the Constitution of India and other laws in force” was not included on the final bill.
Adv Ferreira further said that such matters require detailed consideration and a lot of thought processes so as to consider pros and cons including possible challenges if any, which need to be anticipated for legislation to withstand the test of judicial scrutiny.
But it is clear that the POGO party clearly sidestepped the need to link POGO with Indian citizenship and sought reservation of jobs only to Goans, instead of limiting them to government schemes, thereby trying to fool everyone. But that didn’t happen.
