Team Herald
PANJIM: With just two months left for the Corporation of the City of Panaji (CCP) election, St Cruz MLA Atanasio (Babush) Monserrate has decided to go for polls without projecting any of his candidates as a possible Mayor, even as he has joined hands with former Mayor Surendra Furtado.
Though Monserrate and Furtado are together, sources said Monserrate is not in the favour of Furtado as next Mayor and is instead looking for a fresh young face. Speaking to Herald, Monserrate said, “There are a few candidates amongst the ones I have short listed, who have the potential to be the next Mayor. Hence I would not like to name anyone at this stage.”
The CCP elections are scheduled to be held on March 6, and the process of filing nominations will begin on February 10. The tenure of the present council will end in March. The last elections were held in 2011, wherein the BJP-backed panel had won a majority in the council.
Monserrate, who has a strong hold in various areas of the corporation’s jurisdiction, is expected to introduce many new faces, setting aside the claims of some current corporators. Currently, the corporation has 15 corporators backed by Monserrate, excluding Furtado and his wife Ruth.
Stating that he would field candidates in all 30 wards, the MLA said preference will be given to new faces – male and female – considering their winnability. “I would be announcing my panel a day after the notification for reservation of wards is out,” he said.
The final notification in regards to delimitation of wards is expected on January 11, while the reservation would be finalised by January 31. Backed by Monserrate, Furtado was Panjim mayor for two years from 2013 to 2015, before BJP’s Shubham Chodankar was elected to the position.
Meanwhile, BJP has also begun the process of identifying its candidates. With several BJP workers expressing their willingness to contest, local MLA Siddharth Kunkolienkar has found himself in fix.
