the goan I network
MAPUSA
The civil society and the church in Goa are pulling out all the stops to garner support against government’s recent controversial decisions on revival of the RP-2021 and bringing villages under the PDA.
On Sunday, announcements were made in churches and chapels across Bardez urging parishioners to participate in the Margao meeting on Friday in large numbers to “protest and protect Goa and its identity”.
“Our politicians do whatever they want. Have we given them the right to bring back the RP-2021? People had raised several questions against RP-2021 and that is why it was kept in abeyance,” said Mapusa Parish Priest, Fr Dennis Fernandes.
Urging the parishioners to participate at the Lohia Maidan meeting on Friday, he said it was a fight to protect Goa for future generations.
“It’s not only people from South (Goa), we all will have to join hands to fight against the draconian decisions taken by our politicians,” he said, taking almost 10 extra minutes after the mass.
Continuing further, the parish priest said that by bringing villages in the ambit of PDA, the politicians wanted to finish whatever little was left of “mankulem Goem”.
“Huge projects with over 200 flats are coming up everywhere. We Goans do not have the capacity to buy such flats,” he explained.
Stating that mostly people from outside occupy such flats, he said one day Goans will be reduced to a minority in their own land.
“After some years, there will be no Goans left in the State,” Fr Dennis rued.
He said what was happening in Goa was not “Goenkarponn” but “fottingponn” and Goans should rise and oppose such destructive elements.
Reading an appeal sent across by the Council for Social Justice and Peace, a body of the church, Fr Dennis said that a bus will leave from Mapusa church on Friday to Lohia Maidan, Margao and those who were interested should provide names in the office.
