Sun, sand and elections

Goa may be a tourist8217;s delight, but it is certainly a psephologist8217;s nightmare. It will be hazardous in the extreme to attempt a guess as to which party gets to form the next government in the state, given the size of Goa8217;s assembly 8212; just 40 seats 8212; and the wafer thin margins by which politicians have won in the past.

What makes the state even more unpredictable is the fact that its politicians 8212; and often whole parties 8212; have been known to shed political affiliations overnight for the holy grail of power. It would, for instance, take all the skills of a Gabriel Garcia Marquez to describe the redoubtable Luis Barbosa. In 1990, the man achieved a miracle by guiding seven assembly members out of the ruling party and going on to rule as chief minister of the state for eight months. There may be more of such wondrous developments in store for Goa going by the high jinks that have marked the election campaign. Families have been cruelly torn asunder because fathers and sons, husbands and wives, brothers and sisters, have all jumped into the fray and insisted on being given tickets. When spurned, they have gone on to join other parties, formed their own, or stood as independents. One candidate even filled nomination forms for two different political parties in his enthusiasm to emerge a representative of the people. The winner takes all. That has become the common sense of the times. And everybody hopes to be a winner.

Talking about issues of governance in such a context becomes fairly meaningless. Which is a pity, of course, because Goa deserves better. Here is a state with human development indices that rival Kerala8217;s, the country8217;s highest per capita income, and abundant natural and mineral resources. It is eminently equipped to emerge as one of the country8217;s model states; but for that it needs sound politics and good politicians. Going by the evidence at hand, it is unlikely to get either.