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GOA: Vested interests thwarting removal of ship:Matanhy
HERALD NEWS DESK PANJIM, APRIL 7 :--- Former tourism minister Matanhy Saldanha in a statement issued here said that it has been the will of the people of Goa that River Princess should be removed by all means. With this in mind the
Former tourism minister Matanhy Saldanha in a statement issued here said that it has been the will of the people of Goa that River Princess should be removed by all means.
With this in mind the then government had made every possible effort to achieve this goal. Of late there have been outbursts from various quarters who want to support the charterer claiming to be the owner to stall the removal of the ship.
Saldanha said that when the decision was being taken to remove this ship many approached him with various explanations and intimidations that the ship cannot be removed as the so-called owner would approach the court of law.
But nothing deterred the government from striving to remove the ship out of Goa. Saldanha further said, "I have great admiration for Dr Wilfred D'Souza for sticking to the previous government's decision to get the ship removed. But interestingly it has been noticed that some politicians who have been playing to the tune of the so-called charterer claiming to be the owner are learnt to have been lobbying to stall the ongoing work of removal."
Now it is for the Governor S C Jamir to make sure that the ship is removed at all cost. There is no time for inquiries. The only thing the governor should see is that there is coordination among all departments namely, tourism department, Captain of Ports, MPT-Coast Guard, River Navigation Department and others to see that the ship is removed. At the same time, he said that he is not at all averse for an inquiry but this should under no circumstances stop the work of removal of the ship.
Attempts are being made by vested interest to stall the removal of the boat by filing court cases and creating false impressions in the mind of the public and the salvager.
"I am confident that the governor with his vast experience will not fall prey to the machinations of the vested interest, but make sure that the ship is removed at all cost. I am sure that the governor cannot be influenced even by a section of the press who mainly practice yellow journalism or sensationalism very often in nexus with vested interests", he concluded. .
