Team Herald
MARGAO: Margao citizens are up in arms over the government's apathy in the face of the Rs 18 lakh fraud involving revenues from the feast fair held in May this year. They are expressing outrage and disappointment at the lack of response from the Chief Minister's office, the Chief Secretary, and the Directorate of Municipal Administration
According to information obtained under the RTI Act, the Directorate of Municipal Administration (DMA) has taken no measures to recover the Rs 18 lakh misappropriated by a Margao Municipal Council (MMC) staffer, former Margao Chairperson Savio Coutinho told reporters on Saturday.
He also noted that Chief Minister Pramod Sawant’s statement about rampant corruption during the period from 2007 to 2012 seems to suggest that Margao MLA Digambar Kamat may have no future in his Ministry.
This remark, according to Congress workers from Margao, hints at potential consequences for Kamat amidst ongoing speculation about an imminent reshuffle in the government.
"Since the MMC was unresponsive in taking action on recovering the amount, we chose to escalate the issue to the Chief Minister and the Chief Secretary (CS). While the CS forwarded the complaint to the Directorate of Municipal Administration (DMA) as a formality, the CM seemingly disregarded it, as no directives or actions have been received from his office," alleged Coutinho.
Coutinho questioned whether Chief Minister Sawant is 'under pressure' from MLA Digambar Kamat, given the latter's silence on the fraud. He also criticised the police for failing to "locate" the accused, a lower division clerk, involved
in the case.
Aneil Alvares, another concerned citizen, commented on the potential repercussions of public dissent. "If a call were made for citizens to withhold tax payments to the Council due to its apparent disregard for taxpayer money, the authorities might charge those making the call with sedition," said Alvares. "What action is therefore applicable against the authorities, including the Chief Minister's Office, for abetting the commission of such fraud?"
Clifford Dias stated that unless the entire amount, along with interest, is recovered from the accused, they will not rest. He emphasised that if necessary, they will seek legal recourse to recover the funds from those responsible, due to the authorities' "lethargy in addressing the issue".