Team Herald
MARGAO: Demanding that a cancer hospital be set up at the old Leprosy Hospital in Curtorim, Member of Parliament Francisco Sardinha on Wednesday said he was opposed to any alliance for municipal elections as the same are not contested on party lines.
Speaking to media persons, the MP said he is strongly opposed to the setting up of police barracks in the leprosy hospital premises in Curtorim. He admitted that leprosy has practically become extinct and added that the premises be used for some other medical purpose.
“Goa does not have a cancer hospital or for that matter a virology centre and these could be set up at Curtorim instead of cutting trees to construct quarters for the police there,” he said pointing out that the area has thick vegetation which should not be disturbed.
Recalling there were around 150 leprosy patients at the hospital when he was first elected as an MLA, Sardinha said he is glad that illness has now disappeared and called upon the government to attend to new diseases which are spreading like cancer.
He said he was against contesting the municipal elections in an alliance and argued that everybody would support a good candidate and such candidate would not get votes based on political party.
“When the municipal elections are not contested on party lines, where is the need to have an alliance for municipal polls,” he asked. It would be significant to point out that in Margao Digambar Kamat and Reginaldo Lourenco both Congress MLAs have aligned with Vijai Sardesai to fight the BJP at the municipal elections.
Sardinha accused the BJP government of not respecting the reservation policy going by the way the reservation for ST and SC candidates has been manipulated at the municipal elections.
“Wards should be reserved for SC, ST or OBC depending upon the number of people of these communities living in the ward and not arbitrarily,” he said arguing that the BJP does not respect the election process as it believes in “purchasing elected MLAs from other parties”.
