-Lindeners attend outreach despite protest
The government is launching a programme to build small, one-bedroom houses for destitute persons, including elderly citizens abandoned by their families, Vice-President Bharrat Jagdeo announced yesterday during a public outreach at Watooka House in Linden.
According to a video posted on President Irfaan Ali’s Facebook page, Jagdeo said the initiative would target persons who are extremely poor and unable to construct homes themselves.
“We’re launching a programme where, for people who are really destitute, people who have been abandoned by their families, like elderly people who are extremely poor and can’t afford to build, we will build small one-bedroom houses,” he said.
Despite protest action by members and supporters of the opposition outside Watooka House yesterday, scores of Lindeners attended the day-long exercise, which included several government ministers and representatives of state agencies.
Jagdeo told reporters that housing appeared to be a major concern among residents and said he was looking forward to engaging people from across Region Ten.
He maintained that the region has experienced “enormous progress”, although some persons wanted residents to believe that it had been neglected.
The Vice President pointed to the upgraded highway leading to Linden, which he placed at US$169 million, and a bridge under construction at a cost of US$36 million. He said residents would not be required to pay a toll to use the bridge.
Jagdeo also referred to the Linden-to-Mabura Hill road project, which he said would cost another US$190 million, along with investments in housing and education.
Education, he added, was just as free in Region Ten as elsewhere in the country.
“You have a lot of people who live in the past and have little to offer the country and continue to make statements that are not grounded in facts,” Jagdeo said.
Kiskadee Watch caught up with a few residents who spoke of their experiences at the outreach.
Alice Fraser said she visited representatives of several ministries and agencies, including GWI, after enduring an unreliable water supply for almost two years.
“I’m not getting water, which I used to get all the time,” Fraser said. She related that repeated reports to the person responsible for the water system in her community had produced no results.
“It’s very difficult for me and my children to get water,” she added.
Fraser said GWI representatives promised to contact her that afternoon and work towards restoring the service. She described the officials at the outreach as polite and said their responses to her concerns were positive.
Troy Nelson, who sought assistance with a housing matter, described the exercise as “a very good initiative”.
“I think that we deserve to be heard,” he said.
Nelson said he received encouragement from housing officials that would help him advance his matter but declined to provide further details.
Omayisha Haynes, who approached the Ministry of Agriculture for advice on entering the poultry industry, described the process as quick, pleasant and informative.
She said officials promised to contact her with information about obtaining chicks and the technical knowledge needed to begin poultry production.
Haynes said such an enterprise could provide quality meat and create employment in Linden. However, she said she was waiting to see whether the promised follow-up would materialise.
David Allicock, meanwhile, raised a longstanding dispute over family land at Christianburg, where he said he had lived for more than 50 years.
Allicock said a niece erected a shop on the property while he was away in the interior in 2023 and was now attempting to take control of the land. He said his mother had previously paid the lease and he continued to pay the rates and taxes after her death.
He reported receiving little clarity from officials and said he was awaiting the results of a survey completed last week.
Meantime, Senior Minister in the Office of the President with responsibility for Finance Dr Ashni Singh said the exercise brought together the ministries of Housing, Public Works, Public Service, Human Services and Finance, along with GWI, the National Insurance Scheme, the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission, the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission and the Guyana Forestry Commission.
He said representatives were present to answer questions, offer advice and address problems that residents had been unable to resolve through the agencies’ regular offices.
Singh described the exercise as one in a series of similar outreaches held in Regions Two, Five and Six. He said they formed part of the government’s approach of taking public services directly into communities.
According to Singh, most of the matters raised were being addressed immediately, while records were being made of those requiring further action.
“We’re going to continue to be here until every single issue is listened to and addressed, or a note is taken of it,” he said.
The opposition protest outside the venue included calls for Jagdeo to address the failure to elect a chairman and vice-chairman for Region Ten. Protesters also demanded the resignations of Minister of Public Works Juan Edghill and Minister of Aviation Deodat Indar over the MV Barima tragedy.
At the conclusion of the outreach, Jagdeo dismissed the protest as an unsuccessful attempt to disrupt the exercise and discourage residents from attending.
“I heard some people were making noise in the compound. It did not distract from what was happening here and it didn’t deter the large number of people who showed up here today,” he said.
Jagdeo alleged that the protesters had hoped residents would boycott the activity.
“They failed miserably. They failed miserably. People just ignored all that they had to say,” he declared.
The Vice President said the turnout demonstrated that residents placed their immediate concerns above political considerations.
“It shows that people don’t care too much for the politics when it concerns their lives. And so, I’m happy that they failed. I’m very happy that they failed,” he added.
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