MARGAO
Ahead of what is billed as a semi-final clash between the arch political rivals, former Fatorda BJP MLA Damu Naik on Saturday dared Goa Forward Chief Vijai Sardesai for an open debate on the jobs and employment provided by the Fatorda MLA during the last 10 years.
By saying that sponsoring some tournaments and throwing liquor parties do not mean development, Damu dared the Goa Forward Chief to place before Fatordekars the number of jobs provided to the youth of the constituency.
He said the minorities, including Christians, Muslims and the Scheduled Tribe community, have now realized that the MLA has only used them to further his political interests, adding that a significant section of these communities are turning to him (Damu) and the BJP to meet their aspirations.
“The youth of Fatorda are looking for jobs and employment. They are fed up with rhetorics on environment. Sponsoring some tournaments and throwing some liquor parties does not help the youth. They want jobs and employment opportunities to stand on their own legs”, he said.
Coming down heavily on his arch political rival for the first time in the last four years, Damu said Sardesai used to take shelter of the fact that he could not provide jobs by being in the opposition. “The MLA rose to become a minister, but could not address the issue of jobs and employment of the local youth. And, he could not do justice to youth even after becoming the Deputy Chief Minister,” he said.
Saying that employment and jobs will be a major issue in the coming Municipal and Assembly elections, Damu said it is not enough to just give fertilizers or fodder to the cattle when Fatordekars have been demanding jobs and employment.
“Let the MLA publicly outline what he has done for the minorities and the ST community in the last 10 years. Let him come out with facts and figures to show the number of jobs given to the unemployed youth. I am ready for a debate with the MLA to prove that he has done nothing to provide jobs or provide opportunities to the youth,” he said.
Saying that the BJP is serious about wining majority of the municipal seats from Fatorda, Damu said the party will work hard to win all the 11 seats at stake. “Last time, the BJP drew a blank due to a host of factors. The mistakes we made have now been rectified. The MLA also made a number of false promises to attract the voters,” he said, while promising that the situation will be completely different in the ensuing municipal polls.
