The shifting of allegiance from one party to another appears like changing jobs with the promise of a better pay packet.
Politicians in Goa tend to seek power, so they usually move to a party in power. Ahead of the 2022 elections in Goa, the politicians in Goa seems to be on the run like a headless chicken, ready to accept any party for their survival.
Post-2017, Congress has been the receiving end. Not only has it failed to form the government, but it has lost 14 MLAs so far.
Goa has seen the maximum number of defections – 14, to be precise. The coup was started by Vishwajit Rane and after that followed by Subash Shirodkar and Dayanand Sopte.
SURAJ NANDREKAR
Editor, Goemkarponn
In July 2019, a senior Congress MLA, Aleixo Reginaldo Lourenco, called the switch over of his party MLAs to the ruling BJP as “political prostitution”.
His reaction came after Congress leaders led by then Leader of Opposition Chandrakant Kavlekar, 10 of the 15 Congress MLAs in Goa, joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on July 9, 2019.
Lourenco was only amongst the five MLAs left in the Congress, which had emerged as the single largest party after the 2017 assembly polls.
But sadly, a leader who was calling others “political prostitutes” wanted to break away from Congress and join the Aam Aadmi Party recently.
He did not join, though after Congress high command agreed to fulfil his “demands”.
Of course, this column is not about Reginald, but the question that arises is whether political prostitution is only when an MLA joins BJP? Joining other “secular” parties seems to be “entrepreneurship” or “self-employment”?
“Political Prostitution” is the order of the day in Goa today.
The shifting of allegiance from one party to another appears like changing jobs with the promise of a better pay packet.
Politicians in Goa tend to seek power, so they usually move to a party in power. Ahead of the 2022 elections in Goa, the politicians in Goa seems to be on the run like a headless chicken, ready to accept any party for their survival.
Post-2017, Congress has been the receiving end. Not only has it failed to form the government, but it has lost 14 MLAs so far.
Goa has seen the maximum number of defections – 14, to be precise. The coup was started by Vishwajit Rane and after that followed by Subash Shirodkar and Dayanand Sopte.
Then came the most significant coup of 10 MLA joining BJP.
Now at the fag end of the term, Congress’ former Navelim MLA Luizinho Faleiro joined Trinamool Congress.
It is all so evident that our politicians have learnt nothing and forgotten nothing, and what literally stares all of them in the face is self-destruction.
India is the largest Democracy in the world, but the country cannot continue for far too long in the name of Democracy when brazen prostitution is all the rage.
The canonization of political prostitution is one game that goes on without any qualm of conscience whatsoever.
The issue of the people’s choice has effectively been destroyed from the politics of the change brigade.
In fact, one can say that all elections in Goa are fixed like American TV wrestling. A rich party like the BJP or the TMC can afford not to field a candidate and yet win the election via poaching.
That’s how we roll here in this State where Democracy is a coup at the polls. With the elections just around the corner in February 2022, all the political prostitutes of Goa are looking to take shelter under the “Money Trees” provided by the rich parties.
According to the ADR report, the “most plausible” reasons behind such defections and switching of parties include the absence of value-based politics.
Most defections happen due to lust for money and power.
The other reasons are a strong nexus between money and muscle, the reward of office, and the dearth of efficient and credible leaders.
Unless these trends are not reined in, our current electoral and political situation is bound to deteriorate further.