VARCA: In the many years that he has lived here, the ‘local boy’ of 67 has never been missed as much. And with their Churchill in jail, in the Louis Berger bribery scam and main accused Digambar Kamat not in the same place, Varca is screaming out loud that this “unfairness” has gone too far.
At a little tea stall in Uddo, enroute the Varca Church, the whatsapp joke of Churchill Alemao begging the judge to pardon him on Benaulim grounds since Digambar is on bail on technical grounds has still not stale. The conversation at the tavern in Orlim is similar. The Herald is scourged upon and read cover-to-cover, line-by-line to know the progress of the case. Has he got bail or whether he’s still locked up?
The village is also now talking about Alemao’s wife’s health which is not so great while he’s in jail.
“Churchill has been the topic of discussion in the village for so many decades, from his football club to him breaking and making governments, to him fighting for Konkani, elections, tiatrists, to him talking of Mopa – Dabolim or Churchill being witty by singing or speaking. But this time it’s a repeat of Churchill in the early 1990s. It’s about him being in jail,” asserted Remdious Fernandes from Varca, who’s one of the few toddy tappers in the village.
Similar to Fernandes is another man who helps cut weeds along the roads in Varca and reminds us that Alemao was a nice man way back then and even though he may have been accused of being corrupt, he would help the villagers a lot. James, the odd job man in the village is one of those that feel Alemao is facing the brunt of the greedy younger generation that looted in his name.
But large sections of Varca feel the arrest at night and being in jail this month, especially denying Alemao his 38-year-old tradition of celebrating Mother Mary’s birthday in Vailankanni, is the ultimate punishment and he may now be pardoned. It’s this same section that is set to host a grand rally in Varca-Cavelossim-Carmona-Benaulim-Colva and even across the bridge in Navelim to celebrate his release the day he is granted bail.
“The problem here is that there were many more as corrupt as Churchill, but these dirty politicians opened educational institutions in their constituencies and service people through education. With Churchill there’s nothing tangible, not even a community hall run by the Alemaos, there’s no question of his pardon,” asserted Chadvic D’Souza, an anti-Churchill element in Varca. Chadvic is also a voice like few others who remind you that Goa defeated the Alemaos in four constituencies and not just one and the urge to keeping them out of power is very strong in the constituency.
“You got to realize that 2017 and Assembly Elections are a long time away. From his end it’s how long he can sustain this campaign of being victimized or whether it will fizzle out before polls,” exclaimed former Cavelossim sarpanch, Edwin Barreto.
