MARGAO
Asserting that the Goa government is run by three blind mice, outspoken three-time Congress MLA Reginaldo Lourenco on Monday suspected something sinister behind government’s decision to effect a steep hike in casino licence fees. He has demanded that the government should discuss the entire gamut of issues concerning casino activity in the Assembly.
Addressing the media, Reginaldo said the government has come out with a casino fee structure without taking the industry into confidence, suspecting this is being done to allow the owners to apply for reduction of the fees and strike a deal. “Why was no notice given to the industry before effecting the steep hike. No doubt, the move will help the state to earn revenue, but the question that remains unanswered is who will bear the losses that the state incurred over the years,” he questioned. “This government is run by three blind mice as it has effected a steep hike in the casino license fees. I suspect that dealing has already started to roll back the fee so that it benefits certain operators,” he said.
Suspecting that the hike in the license fees is a game plan to ensure monopoly for a single operator, Regianldo said the government should find out which of the casino operators will benefit out of the fee hike.
Saying that the government has lost the sense of governance and has no authority to rule the state, he said the Congress party had decided to shut down casinos if the party came to power, but added that the power was snatched by the BJP after the 2017 election.
He demanded that the government should put the ball in motion to find out whether the state wants to continue with the casinos or shut down the gambling activity. “If the government wants to regularize the activity, it should place the assessment concerning revenue and jobs in the Assembly,” he said, adding “I think this exercise ought to have been done by the government before the three blind mice took over the reigns of office.”
