Kamat denies allegations of nepotism in picking eleven LDCs
MARGAO
As the Margao Municipal Council’s recruitment of 11 LDCs comes under the lens of Madgavkars, Congress-turned-BJP Margao MLA Digambar Kamat on Wednesday asserted that merit will be the sole criterion for the Margao Civic body while filling up the vacant posts.
The Margao MLA further sought to deny reports that the ruling dispensation had promised to recruit the daughters of two ruling Municipal Councillors, asserting that he did not make any promise to any Councillor in exchange for their support in the election of the Margao Civic Chief on October 12, 2012.
Youth leader Prabhav Naik, however, questioned the recruitment process when Chief Minister Pramod Sawant had reiterated just two days ago that all "Group C" recruitments will be done through the Staff Selection Commission. While emphasising that government jobs are given on merit, Prabhav wondered how the Margao Municipal Council is recruiting 11 LDCs directly. “Where is the transparency? Is this Model Margao?” he questioned.
Reacting to the advertisement issued by the Margao Municipal Council for the recruitment of 11 LDCs and others, he said that the government must answer to the citizens of Margao why the Lower Division Clerk posts in the Margao Municipal Council are not filled through the Staff Selection Commission. “Educated youths must get jobs on merit. I am keeping a close watch on future developments,” he warned.
Margao MLA Digambar Kamat, however, asserted that merit will be the sole criterion for the recruitment of the LDCs and other positions. “We expect thousands of applications for the 11 vacant posts of LDCs, besides the two posts of site supervisor and mason. The applicants for the posts will have to take an exam. I want to state that the recruitment will be done on merit,” he said.
When his attention was drawn to reports that he and the BJP leadership had promised two ruling Councillors to provide LDC jobs for their daughters in exchange for their support for the election of the Margao Civic Chief, Kamat shot back, “We have not given any promise to anyone. I want to reiterate that the jobs will be provided on merit.”
Notwithstanding Kamat’s stand on the issue, the recruitment exercise initiated by the Margao Municipal Council has indeed become a turning point in the corridors of the Margao Municipal building and outside. For when the MMC had advertised the vacant posts of LDCs, besides other posts, in August last year, serious allegations were made that the Civic body was rushing the recruitment to give jobs to the kith and kin of the ruling Councillors. In fact, one of the ruling Councillors, who had supported the BJP-backed panel in the election for the post of Chairperson, had warned that he would be forced to withdraw his support to the panel if the government did not honour the promise made to him to recruit his daughter for the post of LDC.
