DIALOGUE WITH GOANS
* For the first time in the history of Goa the Goans will draw up their own manifesto and agenda of Governance
* To achieve this Aam Aadmi Party will have a dialogue with every section, every locality and every region of Goa
* Through Goa Dialogue Goans will conceive a Goa of their aspiration and dreams, says AAP leader Ashish Khetan
* Prominent among their list of 25 important issues facing Goans includes ‘addressing the casino issue’, according to Khaitan
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PANAJI:
Addressing media persons, AAP’s Ashish Khetan chairman of the “Delhi Dialogues” similar initiative in Delhi which was crucial to bringing them to power, said that more than 25 issues have been shortlisted as ‘main’ issues in Goa and the people’s opinion will be sought regarding them over the course of the next few months.
“Goans today want a political party which honours its poll promises and attaches sanctity to policy announcements. For AAP its manifesto and policy positions are an agreement with the common man,” Khetan said adding that Goans are sick and tired of politicians who have done U-turns on every major issue of Goa.
“For the first time in the history of Goa the Goans will draw up their own manifesto and agenda of Governance. To achieve this Aam Aadmi Party will have a dialogue with every section, every locality and every region of Goa. Through Goa Dialogue Goan will conceive a Goa of their aspiration and dreams,” Khetan told media persons.
Prominent among their list of 25 important issues facing Goans includes ‘addressing the casino issue’ which the party said would mean eliciting opinion from the public of Goa on how they want to solve the casino issue.
“By the end of the entire process, the AAP will have a fair idea of what its manifesto should be,” Khetan announced.
Asked to comment on the party’s stand on the MoI issue, Khetan said that it would be the ‘people who would decide’ and that the party was for a strong prosperous and modern Goa as well as quality education in the state where government schools could stand on par with government schools.
Other issues to be taken up include, that of preserving Goan culture, heritage and identity, self-governance at every gram sabha and ward level, revive sustainable mining that benefits the people of Goa, address the issue of regional plan, make Goa a world class tourism hub and root out corruption in big projects and break the politician-contractor nexus, drug menace, prostitution, to provide affordable housing to Goans, and attract industries especially technology companies; provide affordable fish, world class transport, etc.
The party has also identified certain groups that need special attention including with whom they will hold dialogues including students and youth women, fishermen, farmers seafarers also known as shippies, artists and tiatirists, tourism dependent people, industrialists, taxi and pilot operators, NRIs, Scheduled Castes and Tribes, senior citizens and the like.
