KOCHI: Years after they left the mayoral robe and the Kochi Corporation council hall behind, five former mayors of Kochi returned to the hall once again to share their dreams about their favourite city.
At the council hall where they once presided over meetings, K.M. Hamsakunju, Mathew Paily, C.M. Dinesh Mani, and Tony Chammany compared the Kochi of their times with the present day Kochi and shared their dreams and aspirations at a function organised by the corporation to felicitate them as part of its golden jubilee celebrations.
Mr. Hamsakunju was at his usual humorous best and never shied away from firing salvos at the present council, in which he is also a member, as well as the Mayor. In his parting shot, Mr. Hamsakunju asserted that he would not withdraw his comments even for courtesy sake even if it had hurt anyone, evoking loud laughter in the hall.
Mr. Mani appeared critical of the present-day dispensation and wanted the civic administration to introspect whether it had succeeded in engaging the State government in a constructive manner.
“Any such celebration should have been organised with the involvement of the State government including the Chief Minister and the Minister for Local Self Government,” he observed.
He also urged the civic administration to rise above political differences and unitedly strive for the development of the city.
“Though efforts to construct a new office complex for the civic body began way back in 2004, it is yet to be completed. The golden jubilee celebrations should also benefit the people of Kochi,” he said.
Mr. Chammany, the immediate predecessor of Mayor Soumini Jain, urged the civic administration to give shape to sustainable development models that would improve the quality of city life. “The council should come up with an action plan for the development of the city. The ingress of politics has lowered the quality of business of local bodies across the State. Kochi should create a model for development, which others could emulate,” he suggested.
Mr. Paily urged the civic authorities to set up business complexes and a park in the city. Subhash Bose park, a major park in the city, was originally set up by the British, he pointed out.
K. Balachandran chose not to speak.
Former Deputy Mayors V.V. Michel, C.K. Gopalan, Everest Chammany, E.J. Antony, Sabu George, and M.A. Sadanandan were also felicitated on the occasion. Deputy Mayor T.J. Vinod was honoured as he had earlier served the civic body in the same capacity.
Ms. Jain presided over the meeting, which also paid homage to former civic heads including late Mercy Williams, the first woman Mayor of Kochi.