PANAJI
Aam Aadmi Party has come down heavily on Calangute MLA Michael Lobo stating his numerous attempts to destroy the villages in his constituency, including the latest move to categorise Calangute as an urban area.
Repeating former Lokayukta Justice P K Mishra’s statement that “Michael Lobo is unfit to be a minister”, AAP State convenor Rahul Mhambre demanded that Lobo should be sacked from the cabinet.
AAP Calangute leader Manuel Cardozo stated that, with gambling, drugs and prostitution rackets running rampant, the Calangute constituency has already borne the biggest brunt of the vice-based tourism promoted by the Goa government. Cardozo lamented that Lobo made things worse for the villagers during the pandemic, and said that the uncontrolled influx of tourists was one of the main reasons behind the deadly second wave of Covid in Goa. Cardozo reminded that it was Lobo who was always against any curbs on border entry so that vice-based trades and other illegal businesses that flourish with his blessings would not be affected.
“During last year’s lockdown, we saw Lobo was handing out handwritten 'passes' to his friends to enter Goa despite strict restrictions at the border. This year too, he was the most vociferous MLA against curbs on entry for tourists, despite the second wave set in. Only after cases and deaths in our villages started skyrocketing, did he backtrack to avoid a political fallout,” Cardozo said.
Mhambre stated that Lobo’s actions throughout his tenure have been focused on furthering profits at the cost of local culture and ecology.
“Not satisfied with being Chairman of NGPDA, Lobo’s greed made him create a separate PDA for Calangute and Candolim, which was just a self-enrichment scheme to open up the villages for unsustainable and haphazard development. Now he has gone a step further to destroy Calangute completely by diluting CRZ laws and creating a massive beachfront real estate bonanza for himself and his friends,” said Mhambre.
Mhambre accused Lobo of using even his Ports portfolio to encourage illegalities and destruction in other constituencies.
Pointing to the floating jetty being constructed in Siolim, Mhambre said there is no consultation with local stakeholders even when bringing in projects that would essentially destroy the livelihoods and lifestyle of the villagers. Mhambre also highlighted the Captain of Ports Terminal Building being constructed inside the Mandovi River in Panaji, which he said was a completely illegal structure being built at the taxpayer's expense for the benefit of casinos.
Mhambre said Lobo had no right to continue as Minister having failed to manage all his portfolios, and demanded that CM Pramod Sawant sack him immediately.
