How very true..... On Mar 3, 2017 7:53 AM, "Goanet Reader" <[email protected]> wrote:
> Journalist Eugene Correia ([email protected]) writes: > "Here's my column, Expect a Mixed Bag of Surprises, which the > Herald didn't run on Monday. The editor of the paper said I > am commenting on elections "by sitting in Portugal." The > editor. Sujay Gupta, doesn't even know where I am located. > And I have been writing my column for more than three years. > My previous column was also on the elections and he carried > it. He didn't like my comments on Panaji and Taleigao > constituencies, as his angry note to me said. > > Expect a mixed bag of surprises > ------------------------------- > Eugene Correia > > No matter which political party comes to power, > Goans must hope that the winning party will serve > the goal in giving good governance to the people. > If the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) bounces back to > rule Goa, it will not necessarily mean that the > people have reposed their faith in the party. It > could be that BJP squeezed through because the > non-BJP votes were divided among the other parties > and independents. Overall, the BJP has failed on > its promise of good governance. It’s unlikely any > party will get the required two-third majority and, > perceptively, will have to seek alliances. > > Prior to the elections, there was a mad rush to form a > mahagathbandhan [grand alliance] between some parties, > particularly a tie-up between the Indian National Congress > (INC) and the Goa Forward Party (GFP), the latter which came > about due to a Congress dissenter, Vijai Sardesai. It never > happened because of several barriers, and the Congress went > ahead and fielded a candidate in Fatorda. In this fracas, the > BJP candidate, Damodar (Damu) Naik, could come up trumps. > > The GFP was born out of "revenge politics". In avenging the > denial of ticket by the Congress in the 2012 elections, > Sardesai rode the sympathy wave to defeat Damu. Though he > performed well in the assembly, Sardesai's harping on the > vague concept of Goenkarponn may not solely win him votes, > though it may have won him accolades. This time should be a > close-call for either one, as Damu has been Fatorda's > representative for three times. > > One may never know what provoked Congress to take > on the two warhorses. It's hard to believe that BJP > and Congress stuck a deal to derail Sardesai's > chances. Did Parrikar and Faleiro sit in each > other's laps? Maybe there were wheels within > wheels. As everyone knows, politics makes strange > bedfellows. > > Think of what has happened in Panaji, where Congress has not > fielded a candidate but supports Atanasio J. Monserrate, who > was expelled from the Congress, and formed United Goans Party > (UGP) when his overtures to the United Goans Democratic Party > (UDGP) weren't entertained. Shockingly, his wife, Jennifer > Monserrate, is seeking re-election from Taleigoa on the same > Congress ticket. It throws up the question: will Atanasio > (Babush) be re-admitted into the Congress if he wins the > coveted Panaji seat, which is counted as a formidable BJP > stronghold. > > The BJP incumbent in Panaji, Sidharth Sripad Kuncalienker, is > in the fray. But what about his prospects of pulling off a > victory over both Monserrate and Ketan Kirtikumar Prabhu > Bhatlikar, the latter fielded by Goa Suraksha Manch (GSM), a > party floated by expelled RSS boss, Prof. Subhash Velingkar? > > Kuncaliker won the bye-poll as he was Parrikar's staffer > before Parrrikar was summoned to Delhi. Isn't there a special > friendship between Babush and Parrikar? What seems to be the > gameplan here? BJP boss, Amit Shah, has hinted that Parrikar > will manage Goa, and this either could be by remote-control > or physically moving to take up charge of government if the > BJP captures Goa again. > > The Monserrates are straddling two stools, and it seems > Atanasio has also kept his previous constituency, Santa Cruz, > safe by getting his friend, Antonio (Tony) Caetano Fernandes, > to run on the Congress ticket. There's no doubt that Atanasio > is a king-maker and his writ runs in the triangle of these > three constituencies because of of muscle and money power. > > More than any diligent work for the people, > Atanasio has a track record for amassing ill-gotten > wealth and a long list of police records for > nefarious activities. Atanasio's rise in politics > runs parallel to another strongman, Churchill > Alemao who, however, has longer years in the > corridors of power. Now trying his luck in > Benaulim, where his daughter, Valanka, was beaten > by Caetano (Caitu) Rosario Silva, Churchill is a > never-say-die fighter in Goan politics. Denied a > Congress ticket for serving jail in the Louis > Berger bribery case, Churchill is trying his luck > on a Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) ticket. > > Remember, Churchill embraced the Tirnamool Congress (TMC) > party for his unsuccessful parliamentary run at the behest of > the late Dr. Wifred DeSouza. With Silva having got a recent > boost with the Union Home Ministry declaring him an Indian > citizen, as the sword was hanging over his head since his > astounding win in the last elections, following which a case > was filed on his nationality status, he could have gained in > stature as the saviour of thousands of Goans who have their > births registered in Lisbon. Caitu can feel assured that his > citizenship victory, can translate into bringing him back to > the assembly. This part of Salcette has seen a lot of exodus > out of Goa on Portuguese passports. > > Whatever the hidden agenda between the two 'kumpars', > Churchill has conceded Navelim to Luizinho Faleiro, who was > soundly defeated by Churchill in what is one of the greatest > and keenbest wrestlemania-type fight between the two. So much > so, Luizinho abandoned Goa for long and stayed aloof from > Goan politics. When it seemed that Luizinho has given up his > assembly ambitions, he's back in the thick of the electoral > arena on the lame excuse that friends wanted him to contest again. > > In the new chapter of their relationship, it suits > Churchill to move away from his nemesis, Avertano > Fernandes, who inflicted a humiliating defeat on > the former CM, and leave Luizinho to his former > stomping ground. A win is crucial for Luizinho to > re-ignite his political future. If Congress wins, > and if both Digamber and Luizinho come back > roaring, one can expect a tug-of-war for the the > chief ministership. > > I have avoided Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), as it's a new player in > Goan politics. However, the party can't be ruled out to make > an impact in the electoral politics in Goa. One cannot brush > aside its victory in Delhi over favourites Congress and the > BJP. The party is also making waves in Punjab. If the party > bags a few seats, it can play the role of a broker. The > post-poll scenario is likely to be as messy as the > pre-election scenario was. If I have to make a political > forecast, March 11 will spring a mixed-bag of surprises. > > ### >
