MARGAO
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) lone MLA Churchill Alemao has said he has no problem if the party’s Goa unit chief Jose Philip D’Souza takes a decision to expel him.
The Benaulim MLA further said the Aam Aadmi Party will not win the Assembly election in 2022, but conceded that he and his workers committed a big mistake by not approaching the voters to get them out and cast their vote in the Zilla Panchayat election.
Churchill further said there’s no truth in the rumours that the NCP has extended support to the BJP in the South Goa Zilla Panchayat and added that he and newly-elected Colva ZP member Vania Baptista had called on Chief Minister Pramod Sawant as part of a courtesy visit.
Flanked by Vania Baptista and Nelly Rodrigues, Churchill told the media that party President Jose Philip D’Souza has been armed with powers to initiate action, adding “let Jose Philip expel me from the party and I will have no problem”.
On the Benaulim ZP election result, Churchill said he takes full responsibility for the failure to approach the voters and get them out to vote on the day of the election. “One has to understand that the AAP has around 4000 votes in Benaulim constituency. They have somehow managed to get their supporters out to vote, but our voters could not come and vote for our candidate,” he said.
Saying the Benaulim ZP election result will in no way affect his prospects in the 2022 Assembly election, Churchill said he has faith in the people of Benaulim that they will reelect him once again to the Assembly.
As far as Colva is concerned, Churchill thanked the people of Colva, Seraulim, Betalbatim and Majorda for rallying behind his candidate Vania and voting her to the Zilla Panchayat.
Referring to the row over reports that he and Vania are joining the BJP, Churchill rubbished these by saying the social medial reports are the handiwork of the people who have been defeated in Colva. “I have never joined the BJP but have only extended issue-based support to the ruling party,” he said, adding that there’s no reason for Vania to extend support to the BJP since the ruling party already has a majority in South Goa.
Vania also blamed her detractors for the malicious campaign to defame her through misinformation. “After the election result, I along with Churchill paid a courtesy visit to the CM, which has been construed as offer of support to the BJP. The BJP has got a majority on its own and my support or no support makes little difference,” she said, adding that the NCP has not decided either to support or oppose anyone.
