Goa Diary

Days after its victory, the Congress broke the United Goans Democratic Party and the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party. Last month, Chief Minister Luizinho Faleiro ushered in a 14-member jumbo Cabinet.

Now the common man in Goa has decided to hit back at the ruling party. Last week a group of voters under the banner of the Federation of Voter8217;s Council took out the Congress party8217;s manifesto in a procession and cremated it!

Unselling Goa

Tour operators from Goa wooing foreign tourists tend to give the impression that the State is different from India. In tourism exhibitions abroad, Goa has a pavilion separate from India. Though other states were not too happy, it worked for Goa. Now the bureaucrats in Delhi have decided to club Goa with the rest of India at the World Travel martto be held in London in November. Though it is politically very correct, it doesn8217;t make business sense. As a wag remarked, wouldn8217;t it make better sense to club the more tourist-friendly parts of India with Goa?

Wake them up

People8217;s Movement for Better Roads PMBR, a new citizen8217;s group, has come up with a novel idea to protest bad roads in the State. On Monday, motorists owing allegiance to the body will blow the horns on their vehicles outside the Secretariat to draw attention to their cause. It however remains to be seen whether the gesture will wake up the slumbering netas and babus within!

Tailpiece

Last week, CM Luizinho Faleiro, who peps up his speeches with the Hindu epics and Gandhiji8217;s teachings, received his comeuppance from a journalist. As he quoted the Mahatma to justify the ban on smoking, the chain-smoking woman couldn8217;t help remarking, 8220;Mahatma was also a celibate 8230;8221;!