FALSE PROMISES BY THE CONTESTING CANDIDATES NEVER TO BE FULFILLED

PANJIM: Ward 26 which comprises areas around the Church Square will see a triangular fight. Lot of false promises are on the agenda of the contesting candidates in Panjim in a battle for victory. Frustrated by the non-performance and scams of the current ruling panel in the Corporation of the City of Panjim (CCP), Rui Ferreira, son of Joao Filipe Ferreira, a former president of the Panjim Municipal Council, has thrown his hat into the ring.

Taleigao MLA Atanasio 'Babush' Monserrate has chosen restaurateur Eddie Jorge as a candidate on his panel. While the BJP says it was "unable to find a suitable candidate in ward 26" and has thus extended support to independent candidate Oscar D'Cunha.

Ferreira, who recently released his manifesto, stated that besides taking up ward-specific issues such as footpaths to facilitate the free and smooth movement of pedestrians and vehicular traffic on the busy Altinho road, measures will be pursued to make Panjim a garbage- and plastic-free city and give it a waste treatment plant. These measures will include the provision of small bins to cater to the garbage generated by the large floating population of tourists who visit the heritage zone of the ward.

Ferreira also assures to arrange grants from the CCP for the maintenance of heritage homes and reduce the "exorbitant increase in house tax and other levies imposed on residents".

D'Cunha, in his appeal, says that shoddy development works have drained the municipal exchequer. "Why has the city been neglected for five long years? Can random clearance of debris/waste material at the eleventh hour justify and condone the misdeeds of the outgoing panel?" he asks.

"Parking is a major issue in my ward; there is a severe crunch in parking space and I want to do something about it," he adds.

Jorge's manifesto is part of a common one released by Monserrate and includes scientific waste management with secure garbage bins, increasing green cover in Panjim and improving open spaces and traffic islands.