MARGAO
Its still a day to go for the inauguration of the much-awaited State-of-the-art Zuari Bridge, expected to bridge the gap between North and South Goa.
But, Chief Minister was in Saxtti countryside on Christmas Day, to extend wishes to the Catholic MLAs from the taluka, which many perceived as an attempt to build bridges with the people in the minority stronghold. The Chief Minister’s visit to Saxttidom on Christmas Day may certainly not be part of any Mission Salcete, but Sawant’s very presence in the taluka has become the talking point in political circles and outside.
In fact, the Chief Minister with wife Sulakshana in tow hopped from the residence of one MLA to another to extend Christmas greetings on Christmas Day. He did not ignore the ex-MLAs either, who were all part of the ruling dispensation during the last term, dropping in at the residence of some of the ex-MLAs during his tour of Salcete on Sunday.
Chief Minister and his wife visited the residence of the two Aam Aadmi Party MLAs, Benaulim MLA Venzy Viegas and Velim MLA Cruz Silva, posing for a photograph with the MLAs and their family members.
Congress-turned-BJP MLA and heavyweight Alexio Sequeira welcomed the Chief Minister at his residence in the evening. He also headed to Curtorim to wish Independent MLA and supporting partner Reginaldo Lourenco.
The Chief Minister also dropped in at the residence of former Nuvem BJP MLA, Wilfred D’Sa, who was part of the 10-member group of Congress MLAs, who had defected to the BJP during the last term.
Though Wilfred later quit the BJP to contest the 2022 Assembly polls as an Independent candidate, the Chief Minister seemed to have not forgotten the role played by the former Nuvem MLA, paving the way for the 10-member Congress MLAs to break away from the Congress and embrace the BJP in 2019.
Wilfred pointed out that the Chief Minister had been visiting him every Christmas since the last three years to extend season’s greetings.
Sources in the know informed that the Chief Minister and his wife also descended at the Varca residence of ex-MLA Churchill Alemao for dinner with the Alemao family.
Not making any secret of the CM’s visit to his residence on Christmas Day, Churchill said the Chief Minister came to wish him and his family on the occasion of Christmas.
He made no bones of the fact that he enjoys close friendship with Pramod Sawant, describing him as the Bahujan Samaj Chief Minister.
