TEAM HERALD
PANJIM: Has the Goa Vikas Party, which earlier supported the government, ditched Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar?
Going by the confrontationist rhetoric spewed by the party’s two MLAs Francisco Mickky Pacheco and MLA Caetano Silva, the party seems to be moving away from the ruling coalition ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.
While the party supported the motion of thanks to the governor’s address, Mickky was quick to tear into the government’s many failures including the Lusofonia Games, which he said didn’t benefit the state at all as well as the failure to prosecute those who are guilty of illegal mining.
“How did the state benefit from the Lusofonia Games? We didn’t even get passes. The stadiums were empty. At least they should have distributed a few hundred passes to each of the MLAs. Further even the local players and clubs didn’t get passes to watch the games,” Mickky said.
On the issue of illegal mining, he squarely blamed the chief minister for raising the issue when he was in the opposition and as chairman of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC).
“If illegal mining were to continue at least the 1.5 lakh people would not be affected by the ban,” Mickky said, adding that those who indulged in illegal mining were walking free, but those who did nothing wrong are suffering today.
Caitu too didn’t waste an opportunity to hit at the government castigating them for setting the vigilance department upon the Colva Sarpanch, Ex-Sarpanch and panch member and secretary.
Earlier Thursday, based on a complaint of Jowett D’Souza the ACB registered an offence under the Prevention of Corruption Act 1988 against Snowkon Gonsalves, Sarpanch, Colva Village Panchayat, Angela Borges, Ex- Sarpanch, Colva Village Panchayat, Cajie Fernandes, Panch member, Colva Village Panchayat, and Secretary, Sarpanch, Colva Village Panchayat.
“Why are you not setting the vigilance department against the former PWD minister?” Caitu asked. “Is the vigilance department meant to be used to try small fries like sarpanchas and panchas,” Caitu asked even as he hinted that the same level of corruption was taking place under the current PWD regime.
As per the complainant, the members of Colva Village Panchayat in connivance with
the Secretary, Colva Village Panchayat hatched a criminal conspiracy with malafide intention while holding office as public servants and issued the NOC/licences to garages/ illegal shed in UBI’s Pride apartment and
the encroachment of public access in the property by overlooking the complaints of the residents of UBI’s Pride apts and the locals.
