Dear Editor,
As a civic society commentator, it is fair to give credit where credit is due, and offer critiques when necessary. I attended the dedication of the Kingston Bandstand area development completed by the Office of the First Lady. I consider the project to be an enormous success which should be replicated in other areas in Guyana.
Maybe the Office of the First Lady can do a similar project at the Central Corentyne Whim Community Center Ground, which has a large playground area in need of development. The #63 Beach has also been awaiting a similar development for a long time.
The Office of the First Lady has transformed the Bandstand area with this project. The area looks nicer; feels clean, orderly, and safer; and there is a Police Outpost there. The Food Court area looks clean and nice, and there is a washroom area and handwashing station. These are important conveniences in a recreational area.
Contrast this area with the adjacent seawall area, which looks like a ghetto, with a hodgepodge of stalls that a visitor would want to stay away from. The competent authority needs to step in and adopt some of the quality found in the First Lady’s Kingston Bandstand project for that unregulated area. We must not allow a ghetto to develop there.
The Office of the First Lady has demonstrated that once a project has been embarked on, it will be well accomplished. The First Lady is able to secure cooperation from donors and the appropriate Government agencies to secure successful completion of projects. I am glad the First Lady is focusing on environmental beautification and a clean environment, which are much needed to improve Guyana’s image and to boost tourism.
Guyana is a beautiful country, but a sense of what good landscaping looks like and a culture of cleanliness are sadly lacking. Therefore, the “Dem Boys Seh” column should lighten up and offer an apology to the Office of the First Lady for the unwarranted criticisms of the project. (“De old Seawall has gone!” KN, Sep 16, 2023). I usually agree with most of their commentary, but their criticism of the project seems like nit-picking and what mental health people would call “awfulising.” Dem Boys made a good thing look like a bad thing.
Sure, the old, nasty, “kai” look is gone, and has been replaced with beautifully designed structures. We need more of this to make Guyana look nice. Continue the good work, First Lady! Maybe issue a report card of costs and private donors for skeptics such as “Dem Boys Seh.” Let’s be proud of the new Bandstand area!
Sincerely,
Dr Jerry Jailall
