the goan I network
MAPUSA
After nearly a month, people of Goa could watch and hear Mapusa MLA and Urban Development Minister Francisco D’Souza wishing the people of the State on the occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi.
In a short video circulated on social media, which went viral on WhatsApp, the minister has extended Ganesh Chaturthi greetings to the Goans and wished them wisdom and good health.
“Namaskar! I wish you all on the occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi. I pray to Lord Ganesha that he may bless all the Mapxekars and Goans with wisdom and good health,” said D’Souza, in a 19-second video clip that’s gone viral.
Although he appeared frail in the video, D’Souza’s steady voice indicated improvement in his condition.
This is the first time a video of the minister has made an appearance in public since he left for the US on August 20 for treatment for an undisclosed ailment.
Meanwhile, the Mapusa MLA’s son, Joshua, who had accompanied his father to US, is back in Goa and said that his father’s condition was improving and he was likely to be back in Goa by mid-October. He said his father was doing quite well from the time he was admitted in the hospital in the US.
According to Joshua D’Souza, who is a councilor in Mapusa, his father was gaining weight and was on the road to recovery.
It may be recalled the urban development minister left for US on August 20 and was slated to be admitted at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Centre in New York.
The ailing minister was first flown to a private hospital in Mumbai on July 16 and later flown to US. Due to his ill health, the minister was not able to attend the monsoon session of the Assembly.
