MAPUSA
For citizens of Mapusa, the hafta charge against the Mapusa councillors is a symptom of a bigger malaise where everyone has a hand in the till and blaming just the three will not be fair enough.
The perception makers in town also opine that the Sopo tender has been crafted in such a way that it leaves scope for manipulation.
"Mapusa market is hen which lays golden eggs for councillors. Only those who don't get their share make noise," said Pandurang Sawant, Assistant Secretary of Mapusa Merchants Association.
He said if the Sopo contractor is not allowed to charge extra, there was no way the contractor can recover the tendered amount and his cost.
Besides, the authorities have knowledge of all this and were paid to keep their mouth shut, he said.
"This is happening for the last several years and will continue unless MMC does audit of vendors, demarcate areas and issue ID cards which is mandated in the town vending act but kept on back burner for obvious reasons," Sawant said.
The Mapusa Municipal Council has tendered the Sopo in the municipal market for Rs 1.2 crore this year.
For Mahesh Rane, a resident of Khorlim, Mapusa the demand of hafta was completely wrong and an inquiry should be initiated as demanded by some councillors.
He also said the credibility of the Sopo contractor was at stake as the same contractor was collecting Sopo in Mapusa Market for the last several years.
"Did he face similar problem in the past? Or is it that the amount demanded then was manageable while the stakes went high this time around," Rane said.
He further said that in the past, the Sopo tender would go for some lakhs but for the last couple of years it has gone to crores.
"The council maintains no data about the vendors in the market. They must be deliberately doing this. They want the mess so that they can earn," he said.
According to Gaurish Keni, if the councilors are found involved then they should be taken to task.
"The chief officer should institute an inquiry to find the ultimate truth in the matter," Keni said.
Former chairperson Michael Carrasco held the chairperson responsible for the mess.
"The chairperson should have control of the council. Such things never happened in our times," Carrasco said.
While the jury is still out on the hafta charge, all eyes are on what action the authorities will take on the allegations of the Sopo contractor.
