MARGAO: In his Liberation Day speech during the flag hoisting ceremony at the South Goa Collectorate, the Town and Country Planning Minister Vijai Sardesai listed various “adversaries” that Goans must liberate themselves from.
The minister said, “Goa was the first taken by Portuguese and were the last to leave Goa. After the country got Independence, we lost two 5-year plans. Goa has witnessed transformation and is ahead of many states in health and education. The national commission says Goa has the best quality of life. There is Goemkarponn in Goa, therefore, Goa is hospitable, safe and secular due to of which lakhs of people visit Goa”, he said.
He said that if Brand Goa has to be taken forward, Goa needs infrastructure. Highlighting his government’s achievement, he said that Government is spending Rs 20,000 crore on ongoing development works.
The minister later took a dig at his political opponents. In a veiled attack on Margao MLA Digambar Kamat, the minister said that we need to liberate ourselves from the neglect in Margao. “We have to think of what we can do for Margao. We don’t have a bus stand in Margao even though it’s a commercial capital. We have to liberate ourselves from neglect in Margao. The next Liberation Day, we will take concrete steps and I will pressurise the government”, he said.
Raising the contentious Margao kabrastan issue, he said the same has remained unsolved.
“CM has given his order to complete the kabrastan before Liberation Day. We have to liberate Margao. Our party Goa Forward joined Manohar Parrikar government to do the things that were not done all these years”, he said.
The minister said the opposition party is stuck with only Parrikar’s health issue. “Just because one leader is unwell, he is being hounded to hoist the flag,” he said.
In a veiled attack on Goencho Awaz, the minister said, “While progress and development is going on, the people of Goa should be alert and not cynical. Some people are spreading negativity that Goa is going to be finished. We need to have a positive mindset. We have to liberate ourselves from negativity. We have to liberate ourselves from regressive ideas, pseudo-activism and external interference”.
In contrast to the Revolutionary Goans, who have been asking for a second Liberation, he said, “We need neo-liberation and for that, we need neo-revolutionaries and neo-Goenkars. If Goans don’t participate in the progress, Goans will be phased out”.
He said “Liberation is a continuous process. It doesn’t end. Only adversaries change. That time the Portuguese were the adversaries but today the PWD department is collaborating with the Portuguese to extract water. Desh badal raha he. To bring change, we will have to liberate ourselves from new threats inside and outside.”
“We have to liberate ourselves from prejudice, negativity dogma and petty rivalries,” he added.
He said that Goans are smart and will see through everyone’s schemes (chaal).
“Let’s make a new Goa where Goenkarponn will remain but progressive ideas will come in,” he added.
