Two times MLA Panaji Assembly Constituency, and ex Minister for Urban Development in the PDF Government of Mr Churchill Alemao in 1990, Mr Joao Baptist Gonsalves, a native of Colva settled in St Inez Panaji, expired today morning at 0440 a.m. after a brief illness. The funeral rites will be held tommorrow 9th May, 2006 at 0930 hrs at the Our Lady of Imaculate Conception Panaji and thereafter his cortege will leave for burial at the St Inez Cemetry. He leaves behind his wife and two children a son and daughter.
late Mr Gonsalves was a self confessed baker of repute by profession, and he always took pride to publicly announce his humble beginnings ( unlike several Goans who fight shy of disclosing their traditional background) which he once did when he addressed an electoral campaign meet in Panaji in the presence of late Prime Minister Mr Rajiv Gandhi to enter the electoral fray for the first time essentially as a peoples candidate. During his tenure in politics he endured himself to his constituents with his friendly dispostion and hence easily broke the previous record ----being the first sitting MLA to be elected twice,(though later Mr Manohar Parrikar ex CM broke this record with a hat trick ). Mr Gonsalves was also the President of the Bakers Association and during his tenure he worked to ameliorate the cause of bakers, viz; availabity of flour, firewood etc which during the late eighties threatened the existence of our traditional "poders" bakers. He was associated with the Indian National Congress Party and it is only in recent times that he moved away from politics to concentrate on his traditional profession incorporating modern marketing techniques and ensuring a timely change of guard to carry on the traditional occupation. GODFREY J I GONSALVES BORDA MARGAO GOA [EMAIL PROTECTED] 9822158584 __________________________________________________________ Yahoo! India Answers: Share what you know. Learn something new. http://in.answers.yahoo.com _____________________________________________ Do not post admin requests to the list. Goanet mailing list (Goanet@goanet.org)