Of fragile egos and high posts

Being in public life is a challenging task. Being in round-the-clock spotlight is an even bigger challenge. But everything comes at a cost – sometimes personal and other times public. 

Goa – the land of political uncertainties – makes for a credible case study when it comes to the latest and emerging trends in politics.

The party in power has nothing much at stake, or so it seems. The Opposition parties have a lot at stake in the months leading to Goa Assembly Elections 2027. The churn has begun. In fact, this churn is all around us.

Revolutionary Goan Party aka RGP – a five-year-old party – is crumbling under the weight of its own expectations. Instead of strengthening itself at the grassroots and consolidating its position as a party for niz Goemkars, it is battling internal rifts and rebellions with mutinies breaking out at the drop of a hat.

The one-man-show, Goa Forward Party, is looking up to the grand old Congress party to put up a strong fight against the party in power. The ambitions are sky high. However, the ground realities tell an altogether different story.

With the volatility ruling the roost across political parties, except one (the ruling party), here’s a look at the fallen heroes.

The party appointed you as the state president. It invested heavily in you. It looked up to you to deliver. Deliver what? The state of Goa. How? By hook or by crook!

The high voltage campaigns to take the fight to the government of the day; the adrenaline pumping press conferences; the one-to-one interviews; the headline-grabbing one-liners delivered with conviction and panache – a hallmark of your larger-than-life persona; the likes, reposts, comments and social media memes; an overnight jump in the count of followers; those invitations to attend the parties where the who’s who of amchem Goem is rubbing soldiers with you.

This dream-like phase of your life comes to a sudden halt without any warning. One day you are state president – either a probable chief minister-in-waiting or a sure-shot king-maker. The very next day, you are a nobody. Why? How did it happen all of a sudden?

Overnight, you are striped of the power and perks that come along with the position you once held. What do you do? Go on a journey of self-discovery. Appear before the media and present your case – how hard working a leader you were; how many personal sacrifices you made; under your tenure the party scaled new heights and it was about to scale even newer heights, when suddenly, everything was snatched away from you.

At least it could have been done differently. Or better still, it could have been handled in a more professional way. Why did it happen? How did it happen? You gave these many years for the party. You deserved a lot better.

Granted, these leaders – with exceptional talent and unlimited resources at their disposal – were a rare gift to mankind. Had they been allowed to continue to do whatever they were doing or were planning to do or going to start to do, they would have created history.

But alas, it was not to be so. Their high commands or their party bosses, or whoever they were, had some different ideas. They saw in these leaders what these leaders failed to see in themselves. This was precisely why they were nudged to move on ceremoniously or unceremoniously.

Now, what has happened has happened. Why shed tears before the cameras? These things happen. Performance-based assignments come with a shelf life of their own. ‘Perform or perish’ is the corporate mantra emblazoned in bold letters on the entrance to any corporate house worth its salt.

These political parties – small or big, pan Indian or regional – operate just like any big corporate houses. They are answerable to their stakeholders. If you cannot win elections, if you cannot capture the imagination of the entire Goa, what is the use of the so-called charisma that you claim to possess?

The fame is transient, the position is temporary. The power that you wield is short-lived. Swallow these bitter pills before assuming charge – the journey will be less stressful and devoid of any unrealistic expectations.

If only these leaders had kept themselves in check before anointing themselves the Saviours of Goa, this much heartburn would not have taken place. Now, what next? Lick your wounds until the next big break – of course, if only you are lucky enough. 

This writer is a sales professional from the healthcare industry. When he is not chasing deals, he is pushing his pen to write about current affairs.