Shadow Council for Margao today called upon all MADGAONKARS within Margao Municipal jurisdiction, to identify and felicitate any of the outgoing councillors, who have taken the initiative of Cooking and serving food to the stranded and homeless people during the Lockdown period.
Shadow Council for Margao while deploring the outgoing Council of Margao for all the dubious and manipulative schemes that they designed to siphon out public funds, sought to know who among the outgoing Council members had cooked and served food to stranded and homeless people during the Lockdown period. “We are set to wonder as to who could have been the CHEF of this “cooked story”, which has cost the public exchequer Rs. 8 lakhs”, Mr. Coutinho mocked.
SCM Convener Mr. Savio Coutinho today revealed that Rs. 8 lakhs are claimed to have been spent by the 25 MMC councillors for cooking and serving food to the homeless people. A note dtd 23rd April 2020, moved by the Chairperson of MMC Ms. Pooja Naik stated that the 25 outgoing councillors procured dry ration for the purpose of cooking meals and distributed the same in their respective ward’s. An amount of Rs 32000/- was approved and spent for each ward, Mr. Coutinho stated.
Mr. Coutinho further stated that while the government officially sanctioned funds for the supply of food to the stranded and homeless people, the authorities manning the shelter at the Indoor stadium complex at Navelim were seeking cooperation from NGO’s and other social organizations to supply food to the stranded people there.
No doubt some councillors were seen distributing groceries to their voter’s, however in doing so they were very clearly stating that the groceries have been supplied by the respective MLAs, so where did the money from the Municipal treasury go, questioned Mr. Coutinho.
In the month of May, when we had learnt about this scandal getting cooked, we had filed an RTI application seeking information about the same. However on 6th June 2020 we were informed that the concerned file was not traceable. Interestingly, this file not only resurfaced, but the 8 lakhs also got cleared on 9th October 2020, Mr. Coutinho informed.
We have now applied afresh, for details about this dubious scheme, and necessary course of action shall be decided thereafter he said.
