It is an irony that a very cash strapped Goa government which is struggling to even pay the salaries of its staff, has had the rank audacity to announce grandiose new projects which may never see the light of day. The old age pensioners have not received their Dayanand Social Security payments for the last four months. Given that the government has been borrowing crores every month to tide up the expenses, it is surprising that a seven core facelift for the Goa Legislative Assembly Complex is proposed. Goa also does not need a new Raj Bhavan. That the government may find it next to impossible to identify appropriate land for it is another issue.
In these times when the dire economic consequences of the current raging pandemic is looming large, the Government should act responsibly and get its priorities right. There should be a total embargo on any new projects. The government must clear all the dues of the ongoing projects before venturing into any new ones. As the politicians in Power seem to have lost their marbles, it is incumbent on the bureaucracy to guide and steer our sinking State through these troubled times. The time for cheap gesture politics and expensive unaffordable vanity projects lacking in transparency is long gone.This Government is in perpetual denial about what its priorities are. It must wake up to the fact that the most basic duty of any Government is to protect and provide for its people. In the current dire pandemic situation, the failure of Government to do both at the expense of projects with no obvious benefit to the people is a clear abuse of power and a dereliction of duty. The economy was already spiraling downwards before the Global pandemic. Now that the pandemic is raging out of control the demand for tightening our belts even more and working only on critical, matter of life and death projects for the benefit of the people has never been greater. Our only saving grace is that in Satya Pal Malik we have a very proactive and astute Governor who will not tolerate or approve of any reckless actions and wrong decisions. Aires Rodrigues Advocate High Court C/G-2, Shopping Complex Ribandar Retreat, Ribandar – Goa – 403006 Mobile No: 9822684372 Office Tel No: (0832) 2444012 Email: [email protected] Or [email protected] You can also reach me on Facebook.com/ AiresRodrigues Twitter@rodrigues_aires www.airesrodrigues.com
