MARGAO
The Margao Civic Alliance (MCA) ruling the Margao Municipal Council has come under severe strain, with Fatorda MLA and Goa Forward chief Vijai Sardesai going to the public on Friday not only to say he is hurt over the appointments of the data entry operators, but was categorical in saying the episode has amounted to breach of trust amongst the alliance partners.
The MCA forged by Margao MLA Digambar Kamat and the Fatorda MLA is presently ruling the Margao Municipal Council. As per the power-sharing agreement, incumbent MMC Chairperson, Lyndon Pereira of the Fatorda Forward will hold the chair for 15 months, before the post goes for the candidate of Kamat’s Model Margao group.
Commenting for the first time on the controversy surrounding the appointment of five data entry operators by the MMCl through the Labour Contract Society, Sardesai said the episode amounted to breach of trust, more so that there was a move to appoint the five data entry operators discreetly by the civic body. “The episode has taken place without the knowledge of the Fatorda Forward group in the civic body. It is indeed a matter of concern since the candidates, who were sought to be appointed were all hailing from one place,” he said, while conceding that he is hurt over the episode.
He, however, insisted that he and the Fatorda Forward group in the MMC were totally kept in the dark. Claiming he has had a glance of the concerned file, Sardesai claimed that the file to appoint the data entry operators was initiated on June 9 and a letter was sent to the Labour Contract Society the very same day. The Fatorda Forward panel has no role to play in the entire episode. The file shows that acting MMC Chairperson Deepali Sawal had signed the file and it was only after the process was completed, the chairperson had signed the file as seen,” the MLA claimed.
Responding to the allegations made by MMC councillor Ganashyam Shirodkar demanding to know the silence of the two MLAs, Digambar Kamat and Vijai Sardesai, controlling the MCA, on the controversy, Sardesai asserted that he was not at all aware of the Municipal proposal to appoint the data entry operators, further saying that ‘the matter was never discussed by the alliance partners before the Civic body moved the filed for the appointment of the operators.”
