By Aires Rodrigues
Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar had publicly vowed that he would solidly stand by everything that the late Matanhy Saldanha fought for. He had promised to take forward the legacy of late Matanhy. How then is Manohar Parrikar in a clear betrayal of his promise now vigorously pushing the proposed Airport at Mopa despite Matanhy having unequivocally and consistently stated that the Mopa airport project was a scam and that it should not go ahead. It is also surprising that Alina Saldanha has also made a U turn on what her late husband stood for. Did Manohar Parrikar genuinely respect Matanhy Saldanha and all that he stood for?
The late Matanhy Saldanha’s well researched opposition to Mopa was very crystal clear. In one of his press notes published in 2008 he had stated
“It is now very clear why many politicians and vested interest want the Mopa airport. Many who are demanding the Mopa airport are ignorant or pretend to be ignorant, that Goa is going to lose its identity since the builders are going to build only for migrants from other states. Imagine how much land is already sold to fly by night vested interest in Pernem alone”.
