Dr Wilfred Mesquita, Vice President and Spokesman BJP and NRI Commissioner: He has all along been a most vocal opponent of the Mopa airport and has campaigned for Dabolim to be Goa’s only civilian airport. In fact, Dr Mesquita during past election campaigns addressed several public meetings opposing the Mopa project and rooting for Dabolim. One of his strongest arguments to prove that the government would never have two airports was, “There can only be one ATC in such a short radius. The Mopa airport will have the ATC, so how will we have the Dabolim airport”. In fact Dr Mesquita has told close friends that he is more genuinely anti-Mopa than even Fr Eremito Rebello (Head of the anti-Mopa movement) is.
When Herald contacted him for his comments now, he said ‘I have made several comments earlier, and my comment now is that I have no comments”. Asked what his view was on the Chief Minister’s clear stand that the Mopa airport would be built “come, what may”, he said “As a disciplined soldier of the party, my party and the government’s stand is my stand.”
Dr Narendra Sawaikar, BJP MP South Goa: The South Goa MP is in a piquant situation. He won the Lok Sabha elections by neatly sidestepping the Mopa issue, keeping it out of the manifesto and the public meetings. Now he has no choice but to take a stand. When a delegation of the Goans for Dabolim Only (GFDO) met him last week, he apparently took the view that he wasn’t completely abreast of all the facts. When Herald invited him for a debate on its sister channel HCN, this week, he turned it down with the excuse that was very busy with Diwali functions, even though a choice of three dates were given to him.
Rajan Naik, Cuncolim MLA The lone BJP MLA from Salcete from Cuncolim, Rajan Naik, is batting for both Dabolim and Mopa airports. Toeing the party stand on the airport issue, Rajan Naik said that he fully supports the government’s stand on the need for a new airport at Mopa to meet the future requirements. He, however, hastened to add that Dabolim will continue to exist even after Mopa becomes a reality. This is obviously more of hope and less of reality. “Dabolim will remain as Goa’s civilian airport. But at the same time, we have to make provision for a new airport to meet the future requirements”, Mr Naik said, while saying that the government should expand the highway North-South before work on the airport gets underway for quick movement of traffic. Incidentally, Rajan said that he has not received any memorandum or petition from any quarter from his constituency opposing Mopa airport till now.
