TEAM HERALD
PANJIM: The past always catches up and while the BJP may well brazen it out and wish it would all go away, a gentle display of BJP’s promotional material, party documents and of course utterances in the Assembly by its MLAs, broadens the period of false promises on the Regional Plan, stretching it back to even before the 2012 Assembly elections. Here’s a simple gallery of such false promises for you to know or remember. Documentary evidence of each has been provided with this story.
Annexure A : BJP manifesto 2012: The final point on page 1 of the BJP manifesto for the 2012 elections states: REGIONAL PLAN WILL BE SCRAPPED AND A NEW ONE TO BE DRAWN UP WITH PEOPLE’S PARTICIPATION IN A TRANSPARENT MANNER
Annexure B: In a booklet called “Congress led Tainted Govt, 2007-2010”, released by the BJP, highlighted the various charges of corruption leveled against the then ruling Congress, the portion on the Regional Plan states: “THE FINALIZATION OF THE REGIONAL PLAN IS SELECTIVELY DONE TO FAVOUR BUILDERS AND LAND SHARKS OF THE RULING PARTY”.
Annexure C: Goa Governor Kateekal Sankarnarayanan address in the Goa Assembly on March 20, 2012, Para 30: MY GOVERNMENT IS VERY MUCH CONCERNED ABOUT ALL THE ISSUES AFFECTING THE GENERAL PUBLIC. ONE SUCH ISSUE IS THE ISSUE OF REGIONAL PLAN 2021. MY GOVERNMENT WILL DENOTIFY THE REGIONAL PLAN 2021 AND FORMULATE ONE IN DUE CONSULTATION WITH ALL STAKEHOLDERS. MY GOVERNMENT FIRMLY BELIVES IN GRASS-ROOT PLANNING AND PARTICIPATION OF PEOPLE IN ALL DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITES OF THE STATE.
Annexure D: Extract from the debate on the motion to vote on the Governor’s address. Motion moved by Glen Ticlo and supported by Ganesh Gaonkar.
Speech of Subhash Phaldedsai (BJP MLA Sanguem): IN HIS OVERALL SPEECH WE FIND THE REFLECTION OF THE MANIFESTO OF THE BHARATIYA JANATA PARTY WHICH BROUGHT PARIVARTAN IN THE STATE. THE GOVERNOR HAS ASSURED THE PRESENT REGIONAL PLAN 2021 WOULD BE REPLACED BY THE NEW ONE AND DETORIATE (MEANT REITERATE) THE GOVERNMENT’S BELIEF IN GRASSROOT PLANNING AND PARTICIPATION OF PEOPLE IN ALL DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES IN THE STATE”.
Readers, especially people in the villages and other stake holders for whom this plan is linked to Goa’s identity and future, please pause and let this sink in. Now place this in the context of what the Parsekar government plans to do. Push the same plan in 174 panchayats on the pretext that these panchayats have not raised any objections to the plan. While this is predominantly false, has anyone asked them, why is there a smokescreen on their party and their government repeatedly calling this Regional Plan, anti people and corruption enabling? Why is the very same plan, far from being scrapped/de-notified is actually being given a new lease of life?
