AGM OF GULF GOANS HOTELS CO.

By Special Correspondent.

As scheduled, the Annual General Body Meeting of Gulf Goans Hotels Company was held at Hotel Mandovi, Panjim, on Saturday 27^th of this month at 10.30 AM.

 It was a very chaotic meeting from  the start itself when the ageing chairman Justine Fernandes from Saligao failed to control the proceeding because he is crippled physically and also crippled vocally. Cannot walk freely and cannot talk freely and yet shamelessly sticking to the chairman’s chair. The way he was seen at the dais it looked he lost his sanity.

When there was a chorus in the House for the resignation of chairman, like a typical Saligao Fox he handed over the Mike to Alex Wilson Coelho and escaped from his seat.  Was it right on his part to hand over his responsibility to Coelho when he is present?  If he is unable to deliver the goods then why he accepted the chairman post?  There was no proper person even to take down the minutes of the meeting.

It was a very pitiable scene to watch the directors seated at the dais arguing and fighting – not fist fight – like Cats and Dogs, shouting and howling abuses at one another at the top of their voices.  This showed that there was no unity in the Board and it was proved to be in total disarray. The Board looked to be devided into two factions, one faction owing allegiance to  Alex Wilson Coelho and both the factions without any shame and decorum were accusing each other of lies, cheating and robbery. It was a scene where you saw people without  caliber fitting to be the Directors.  They have lowered the dignity of the term “Director”.

The meeting erroneously ended without completing the Agenda and election for the Board members was conducted fraudulently allowing the Proxy votes even much after the end of the meeting officially.  Proxy votes of over 35,000 were disqualified on technical grounds as per the acting chairman but how and on what ground was not properly explained and by which legal authority. It looked it was done purposely by the acting chairman to lower the upper hand gained by the opponents of his faction. The chairman and also the acting chairman Mr. Coelho totally failed to maintain the required discipline and system and procedure.  The election was a total farce, the meeting was a total joke.  According to  the information to create unruly situation in the hall even some Bouncers were brought but fortunately no untoward incident occurred.    The whole meeting was contestable.

The election results are not declared yet since counting of votes will be completed on Monday as it was too late last night to complete this job. The question now comes: Were the Ballot Boxes sealed officially and kept in safe place where there is no room for tampering?  Since there are two mastermind crooks around to grab the company affairs, everything is possible.

More news will follow.

"DADAGIRI" OF NON-GOAN HOTELIERS.

At the time of the construction of Taj Hotel at Sinquerim falling under Candolim Panchayat, it was agreed by the Taj Management to provide maximum number of jobs in the Hotel to the locals and to the Goans as well. However, when Hotel started functioning, it was brought to our notice that locals as well as Goans were ignored in employment there though a few of them were appointed in the secondary and tertiary jobs while outsiders and non Goans were employed in greater number and also on important positions. This was somewhere in 1974. That means I was then 40 years younger with full of energy, knowledge, daringness and youth eager to fight for justice for locals and Goans.  Since I was very active in local affairs, locals expected me to fight for justice for them against Taj Management.  

Alex Pinto from Candolim Ximer was my friend having vast potentials to fight for justice, joined me to wage a war against Taj Management for ignoring the locals in the employment. Candolim Panchayat and the prominent bigwigs remained silent because they got their quota from Taj and hence they decided to accept the injustice meted out to the locals and to the Goans by the Taj management. However, myself, Alex Pinto and very many like minded locals refused to accept this injustice to the locals.  Alex Pinto had vast influence in Goa and elsewhere and thru his contacts he got the news that the big boss of Taj, JRD Tata is scheduled to pay his first visit to Goa to see his Hotel at Sinquerim built on Candolim Communidade land;  this was the first 5 Star Hotel of Goa.  As an intelligent planner, Alex Pinto nicely put his trap to catch Tata at the entrance of Sinquerim while on his way to Taj Hotel and submit a Memorandum of our demands to him. Our main demand was employment in greater number to locals and to Goans.

As planned, we both stopped Tata’s Mercedes Car, greeted him with welcome to Goa and handed over to him our Memorandum explaining to him our disappointment over injustice to the locals. Knowing this, Tata felt very bad and showed his disappointment to his Taj management asking to satisfy the locals first.  Immediately then the Taj Management changed its policy in favour of the locals including an offer for me to go to UK for further studies in Hotel Management which I politely turned down.  When this news started spreading far and wide, many politicians and political parties started approaching me to join them some even with an offer of election tickets but this too I declined politely.

If Taj Management had not to change its policy in favour of locals, we devised one more strategy which means to stop all the vehicles taking guests to the Taj and informing them not to patronize Taj because Taj is anti – local.  Then we would print pamphlets to ask everyone not to patronize Taj Hotel and distribute the same to all over Goa starting from the Airport, thru our contacts.   Then we would ask everyone to give total non-cooperation to Taj and its non-Goan staff.  Somebody suggested even to stone their vehicles but we declined such methods.

Our other plan was to organize Rallies right up to the Taj and for this we thought of creating an army of like minded locals.  In this fight we were firm to keep the local Panchayat out of our circle because members of Panchayat were cunning and as such we could not trust them.  If you want to organize any strong movement then you must try to keep the politicians away because they have their own political and money making agenda for which sake they will at your movement cost pursue their own agenda.   

Panchayat is the nursery of corruption where most of the members of ruling faction make money thru illicit means and because of this almost everywhere Panchayat members headed by the Sarpanch amass wealth beyond one’s imagination. If one sees below and around his nose, till yesterday a person coming from poverty stricken family background suddenly today by joining Panchayat becomes crorepoti.  This can be proved from the lifestyle they live with Bunglows, posh cars, sophisticated wives and huge Bank Balance. How is this possible?  Only thru looting and on top of it they move in society with their heads high of course shamelessly and act like Saints in the Church even by receiving holy communion.  And unfortunately, all the rascal Pe. Vigars in their respective villages support them of course against Christian doctrine. The greatest Devils are some of the Pe. Vigars.

In our locality we are suffering from corrupt political  leadership. Our so called leaders are not static in their fight for justice, they are only interested in their own personal goals and secondly because they are selfish the locals  in general don’t trust them.  They are not sincere to the cause of justice.  In every village there should be a group of movement makers for the good of the villagers without involvement of the politicians. If such groups exist with dedicated members, in every village there would not be injustice to the villagers. Such groups are imperative in the coastal belt where the leadership of some of our villages is gone into the corrupt hands.  Can in my village first somebody come forward to Bell the Cat because upright villagers have lost their faith in the current leaders and also in Panchayat to do justice and real good? All those local politicians coming from Ladru-Pedru type of background will amass looted wealth not only for them but also for their children and grand children.

In view of what I wrote above, it is very  easy to handle the injustice done to the locals by the non-Goan Hoteliers (as described in my previous article) who got no right to dictate terms to us and to act with us as our landlords. The non-Goan Hotliers and their non-Goan employees are looting Goa.  

 

A.     Veronica Fernandes,
Candolim.

 

  

TOURISM SEASON-MESSY ROADS & ANTI-GOAN HOTELS.

IS THE COASTAL BELT OF GOA GEARED UP TO COPE UP WITH THE COMING TOURIST SEASON?

Definitely not, at least Candolim where you find a mess on the road without proper personnel manning the road to control the excess flow of traffic especially at the crucial places and not erecting Speed Breakers at the very important busy spots mainly  at the Tinto Junction and in front of the Primary School near Panchayat Ghar.   No doubt the local MLA Michael Lobo is doing a good job of widening the roads yet there are lot of hurdles on the road due to rough and immense traffic flow by the irresponsible Indian tourists who ignore the road safety rules. Most of the injuries happen to the Two Wheelers not because of the non-wearing of Helmets but because of the bad roads.  Even in Sinquerim on way to the Light House in front of Vijay Malaya’s private Jetty the concerned authority erected the Speed Breaker to please Malaya but failed to erect the same at the required places.   

The vehicles parked on the main road for the  guests of Hotel “Grand Mercure, Goa Shrem Resort” in Pintos Vaddo Candolim, opposite to the Asilo and next to the well-known miraculous Holy MAND were  till yesterday a hindrance to the smooth traffic flow on the main road. These cars belonged to the locals and being so they should have been given preferential treatment by the Hotel management by also accommodating them along with that of the Hotel’s cars where especial place is provided in front of the Hotel. Or it was the duty of the local Panchayat to provide a suitable place for parking these cars to avoid  hindrance to the smooth flow of the traffic on the main road.

As per the available information, one portion of the property where this Hotel is built was originally the property of Candolim Communidade.  But I am not aware that this part was sold by the Communiidade and neither I am aware that Candolim Communidade is selling its land. Now, the question is: How did this land reach into Hotel’s hand?  Will the Communidade answer  this question?

This Hotel is a big inconvenience to the Holy MANDD located since a century back, next to the Hotel.  Also its loud music is creating disturbance not only to the neighbours but also to the surrounding areas.  Secondly the Hotelier must know the piercing power of the Mandd and its Miraculous Cross.  According to the tradition if any inconvenience is done to this Holy Mandd’s sanctity or any sinful and vulgar acts are performed in its vicinity, the Mandd maintaining its ruthless tradition liquidates not only the persons responsible but also the venue where the sinful and vulgar acts are committed.  If the Hotel is going against the sacred tradition of the Mandd then it surely is going to face its doom with the effect of the mighty Sunami created by the mighty traditional power of the Mandd.  Even those who are involved in assisting the wrong doer directly or indirectly will not be spared of the Mandd’s punishment.  This is as per the tradition and history of the Mandd.  And as we know, history repeats itself and surely it will. Time alone will justify this statement.

It is nice to know that big chain of Hotels is investing heavily in Goa that creates job opportunities to the locals.  As per my information this same Hotelier earlier has also constructed one more Hotel in Candolim and in that Hotel locals were hired but within a few months most of them were retrenched.  Now, my question to the local Panchayat is this:  Did it not put the condition to the Hotelier at the time of issuing license to employ more locals in that Hotel? By replacing the locals with outsiders the Hoteliers are upsetting the demographic structure of Goa in favour of outsiders. This anti-Goan trend must come to an end and every local must raise his voice against this anti-Goan trend.

Finally, is this the same Hotelier constructing one more Hotel in Candolim in  CRZ belt?  If yes, which authority gave license for constructing this Hotel in CRZ belt? The local MLA Michael Lobo must immediately investigate this incident if he is interested in the wellbeing of Goa.  I also request the concerned NGO’s to look into this matter without any further delay.

A.     Veronica Fernandes,

Candolim,

Goa.