The refrain among green activists is, "she never answers our phone calls". That has reportedly angered Goa Foundation. Even, a popular local activist, also a diehard Mathany supporter and one who has given the most to the Saldanha family in all the elections they have contested, has said in some circles that his single biggest mistake in life was to support Alina. In fact, the joke in village Cansaulim is that the only presence of Alina being their MLA is the sight of her brand new white officia
Many are upset that she did not challenge CM Manohar Parrikar when he claimed that Matanhy Saldanha had supported him on Mopa.
We know the people of Velsao, which is part of Alina's Cortalim constituency, are angry because development has not come here almost a year after she replaced Matanhy as the MLA, following his death. Elsewhere in the constituency, the story is the same ; how Alina has been co-opted by Parrikar and has gone silent on all the promises she made before getting elected. Now, the only time one sees or hears her are the occasions she parrots HMV (His Master's Voice).
The refrain among important Green activists is, "she never answers our phone calls". That has reportedly angered Goa Foundation. Even, a popular local activist, also a diehard Mathany supporter and one who has given the most to the Saldanha family in all the elections they have contested, has said in some circles that his single biggest mistake in life was to support Alina. In fact, the joke in village Cansaulim is that the only presence of Alina being their MLA is the sight of her brand new white official car which is often parked in the village square.
Some panchs of the Arossim-Cuelim-Cansaulim village panchayat have publicly called her 'unapproachable and rude'. A woman from Cansaulim was also reportedly rebuked when she asked Alina to give her a letter of recommendation for the government's mediclaim scheme. The MLA reportedly said she would have to oblige everyone in the village and offered the ailing woman money instead. In fact the jury is still out on whether it is Alina's naivety that is working against her or, plain simple inbred arrogance. If it is gullibility that is her problem, her meeting with Parrikar along with an a political priest from Sancoale and obtaining his assurance of support for their candidate Narayanan Naik in last month's sarpanch election, is evidence of that. That didn't work out as per plan and an embarrassed Alina later criticized the BJP.
Meanwhile, thanks to the decision by the panchayat to remove the old garbage sites in Cansaulim, the bypass road NH17 and the road behind Queenie Hotel (both not far from her office) have been turned into impromptu garbage dumps! And she is supposed to be the environment minister!
