A picture tells a thousand words, so goes the popular adage. The government released a picture of a frail-looking Chief minister Manohar Parrikar seated with IT Minister Rohan Khaunte and other members at an Investment Promotion Board meeting held at the CM’s private residence at Dona Paula. Khaunte tells the waiting media that Parrikar is in good health, but the picture tells an altogether different tale.
What is the government trying to prove by releasing a photo showing the CM sitting on a sofa, nestled between pillows? Would it mean that the chairman can just take his seat and watch the proceedings unfold as projects amounting to Rs 230 crore come up for clearance? Chairing the meeting would effectively mean taking complete control in terms of discussions on proposals, offering comments and suggestions and finally taking appropriate decisions on either approving, holding back, deferring or rejecting projects. The photo has undoubtedly established the presence of Parrikar, but whether he could administer his responsibilities at the IPB meet remains a huge question mark. You cannot show a photo to project that administration is going on smoothly. On the contrary, the photo is a pale reflection of the fact that Parrikar is forced into a situation despite his deteriorating health. There is no word on what the CM spoke at the meeting and all what we could gather from Khaunte is what we’ve been hearing so far, that the Chief Minister is recovering.
Mockery is being made of the system and scant respect is shown to Parrikar, a leader who remains ingrained in the hearts of the people of Goa. This should stop somewhere. The ‘all-is-well’ portrayal with a Parrikar photo is in very bad taste and it’s time politicos stop playing with the life of this iconic leader.
If the government is confident of CM’s improving health, as Khaunte puts it after the IPB meeting, why is there no video or an audio message so far? If Parrikar could send two video messages in May this year from New York’s MSK Cancer Center where he was undergoing treatment, why is there no word now to end this ‘politically tainted’ suspense?
The IPB meet has happened and coming up next on Wednesday is a cabinet meeting at the same venue. Are these successive meetings an attempt to pull wool over probing eyes? Governance cannot happen in such seclusion and in no measure can these meetings explain the condition of the CM’s health.
The lull has ended and the focus has once again shifted on to Parrikar. Surprisingly, health minister Vishwajit Rane has given away one of government’s best kept secret that the CM is indeed suffering from pancreatic cancer. Mind you, till then nobody in the government dared even to utter the dreaded word ‘cancer’. And we all got updates from various politicos depending on how best their political hunger was satiated. This is when we get to hear of administration collapse, miracles and of course recovery. People’s concern for the health of the CM stems from these very discerning voices within the coalition government.
