Panjim votes for devpt, upliftment of citizens

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THE GOAN NETWORK
MAPUSA: They came, they voted and they spoke their mind, making it known that Panaji has indeed lagged behind whether in infrastructure development or in socio-economic growth of the citizens.
They also said that late chief minister Manohar Parrikar was an able administrator, but someone who made mistakes.
“Naturally, when we vote for a candidate we see who can get some development for Panaji. Panaji needs lot of development. See the condition of the roads or the St Inez nullah, which for years has not been cleaned,” said RMS Khandeparker, former High Court judge.
He also said that there was a need to control the menace of casinos in River Mandovi.
“I am not of the opinion that the casinos should be taken away in one shot and the source of income denied to the government. But everything should have some limit,” he said.
Rui Ferreira, a resident of Panaji, opined that there should be social upliftment of all the people and not only of one community.
He said during the former Panaji MLA’s term, there was economic growth of only one community which was associated with the ruling party.
“So I have voted to ensure that there is economic growth of citizens and not a particular community,” Ferrira said.
A 28-year-old voter from Boca-de-Vaca was of the view that Panaji was far behind vis-à-vis development and pointed to neighbouring Taleigao, which has outdone Panaji.
“I have voted for development, youth empowerment and betterment of the city of Panaji,” she said, requesting to remain anonymous.
“The rural areas like Valpoi has done much better than our capital city,” she added
She also lamented that educated youth in the city lacked job opportunities.
“The youth of Panaji have been deprived of opportunities. We are all educated but there is no scope for employment,” the young voter said.
The voters of Panaji admitted that late chief minister, Manohar Parrikar was an able administrator but faulted at times.
“Legacy left behind by Manohar Parrikar cannot be ignored. He dominated the political scene for the love of Goa. It’s not that everyone's views are always correct. Some mistakes might have been committed. Everybody commits mistakes. But on the whole he has done a lot of work that we can’t ignore,” Khandeparker said.
The young voter of Boca-de-Vaca said the former CM was a very experienced person.
“In terms of administration he was perfect, but somewhere something was lacking,” she said.
Ferreira admitted that late CM Manohar Parrikar was unquestioned leader and everybody followed his instructions. He also said that the present setup was missing that control.
“There is an undercurrent within the BJP in the present setup. The group closely associated with Manohar Parrikar has been left out by the present candidate. They have silently worked against him,” he said.