Why terminate beach cleaning contract? No inquiry: CM
GOANEWS DESK, PANAJI | 14 March 2016 20:42 IST
Terminating the contract of beach cleaning is not the solution, Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar says while ruling out any inquiry into the alleged scam.
“There is absolutely no scam in the beach cleaning contract. The contractor did not fulfil certain requirements and the government has not paid the contractor for that”, he told the media.
Parsekar had a press conference after the Assembly session today as the opposition raised a pandemonium on the issue, stalling proceedings of the House.
In fact Parsekar said the whole chaos was stage-managed so that the speaker adjourns the House and the opposition gets publicity.
“Independent MLA Vijai Sardesai had no reason to rush to the well while I was replying to Digambar Kamat’s question. Vijai had not even asked a question,” he said.
It was clear, he alleged, that the opposition was not interested in getting any explanation from the government but purely wanted to create an anti-government picture before the public.
According to the chief minister, the full file of the beach cleaning issue has been given to independent MLA Rohan Khaunte, who raised the issue in the Assembly, and he was free to file a complaint if he finds any scam in the contract.
Parsekar however admitted that the contractor was at fault and even the government had identified certain flaws in implementing the contract.
“But terminating the contract is not the solution to it. We need to correct the flaws”, said Parsekar, who had to face the music today in the House as Tourism Minister is taking bed rest following his by-pass surgery.
He also claimed that beaches all along the Goan coast are found to be in a much better condition since government has taken up beach cleaning activity.
He also regretted that important public issues could not be discussed in the Assembly today due to unruly behaviour of the opposition.
IT’S COFFER-CLEANING: VIJAI
Sardesai, in a post on social media, however termed it as a coffer-cleaning activity, not a beach cleaning activity.
“Government is wasting public money over the beach cleaning activity, which the government itself has certified as sub-standard”, said his post.
Instead of replying to the pointed questions, Sardesai said the government has been giving same replies repeatedly in every Assembly session.
“The government is not sincere in accountability and preventing wastage of public money”, he stated.
He also justified disruption of the proceedings of the House stating that the government was not agreeing to the demand of judicial inquiry into the beach cleaning scam.
