….NDC Chairman says resources limited, promises action
BY MICHAEL YOUNGE
Residents of Better Hope, La Bonne Intention (LBI) and Success along the East Coast of Demerara on Monday called on the local Neighbourhood Democratic Council and the relevant regional as well Central Government bodies to take swift action to effect urgent repairs and upgrades to key access roads in their communities which are now in a deplorable state.
The residents claimed that the roads are being neglected for years and little or no work is being done to improve the conditions of the roads.
“I am living here for about 3 years now and these roads have always been in this poor and deplorable condition. The NDC does try but they could do much better…It is a sickening situation because when it rains, the road are impassable”, a resident from Montrose related to the Guyana Times when this newspaper inspected the roads in the community.
Another resident alleged that “you could swim in some of these potholes” explaining that it is a shame that the roads have been allowed to deteriorate to such a poor state.
When contacted, Chairman of the Better Hope/Success/LBI NDC, Zaman Shaw sympathized with the residents. He admitted that the roads in those communities were in dire need of repair but distanced his NDC for being solely responsible for their maintenance and upkeep.
Shaw said that his NDC has been doing its part and has been lobbying but the RDC and Central Government to make more resources available to make the necessary interventions.
“We are not responsible for making major changes or upgrades to the road infrastructure. We are responsible for patching the roads and we have done our best with the limited resources that we acquire from time to time”, he explained.
Shaw said that he has personally written the Chairman of the RDC explaining the gravity of the situation in a bid to get more assistance. He clarified that the region and central government has been cooperative in some respects.