MARGAO
Strongly batting for the blocks and the organisation to take the party forward, South Goa MP Captain Viriato Fernandes on Wednesday said that the Congress organisation definitely requires a push to build the party across the state ahead of the 2027 Assembly election.
The MP further said he is not in the race for the post of Goa Congress president, saying he will give everything for the party to build the organisation as an ordinary karyakarta, reminding that he has become an MP because of the hard work put in by the workers.
When the media questioned him why the party could not build on his victory in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls in South Goa’s hinterland, as the party has fared badly in the talukas of Ponda, Sanguem and Mormugao in the ZP polls, Viriato said, “We definitely require a push in the organisation. We will fail if I disagree on the need to give a push to the organisation. There are some blocks which are strong, as was seen in the ZP polls, but there are some blocks which require a push and attention.”
Reiterating his stand that the blocks should be given prime importance in recommending candidates for any election, the MP made it clear that it is not a question of winning or losing, but that the party should give a message that the common worker matters to the party. “Almost 90 per cent of the candidates nominated by the party in the ZP polls were recommended by the blocks this time,” he said.
When his attention was drawn to the fact that all candidates recommended by the blocks may not have winnability, the MP said, “Numbers are also important. But if we only go by the numbers, what happens is that you end up compromising on ideology to somehow come to power. We will not only fail in our ideology, but we will hurt the sentiments of the voters. No doubt, we have sat in the opposition for too long, but there cannot be compromises on ideology.”
Underscoring the need to strengthen the organisation, Viriato said, “In some places, the blocks have risen to the occasion to bring the party to power. In some cases, the organisation was not felt on the ground. We have to introspect why the organisation was conspicuous by its absence and put more efforts to build the organisation.”
