Tender cancelled amid allegations of mismanagement
MARGAO
Congress leader and former chairperson of Margao Municipal Council Savio Coutinho has alleged that the Margao Municipal sopo collection has come very handy for some vested interests in the Council to make a quick buck.
Reacting to the decision to cancel the sopo collection tender scheduled on Saturday, Coutinho said vested interests devise some way or the other to reap monetary benefits out of the sopo collection.
Giving detailed information and background of the issue, Coutinho recalled how a PWD civil contractor was roped in to bid for the sopo collection tender, while the actual collection was being done by close associates of a local politician.
“We exposed the fact that the instalments were not being paid, and yet the contract was extended for a further period. And upon our demand for the recovery of the pending dues, the contractor submitted a letter of withdrawal from the contract in June 2024,” Coutinho said.
He added: “The sad part is that the Council waived off an amount of Rs 2.39 lakh payable by the contractor, in total violation of the agreement. We have already submitted our objection to this loss to the public exchequer, and we hope that necessary action will be taken by the government for its recovery.”
Saying that the MMC has been collecting the sopo departmentally since June 2024, he said the sopo collection that reaches the Municipal treasury is far low than expected.
“If one considers the upset value of the contract which is Rs 69.30 lakh for 12 months, the same works out to Rs 5.75 lakh per month. And this amount the contractor pays to the Council after deduction of the wages of his staff and other expenses, including the contractor’s profit,” he added.
