The massive two-day cleanup exercise throughout the Capital City of Georgetown got underway this morning.
Some 13 communities are expected to benefit from this initiative, which will see the cleaning of illegal dumpsites, weeding and raking of parapets.
The exercise is being done in collaboration with the Joint Services, the Ministries of Public Works and Local Government and Regional Development, the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority and the Solid Waste Management Unit.
President Dr Irfaan Ali joined stakeholders early this morning for the commencement of the exercise. He lauded those who turned up this morning, noting this is just the tip of the iceberg as it relates to government’s plans to drastically transform the capital city.
He noted that there are 25 sites in total throughout Georgetown that are being targeted this weekend.
“This is not just going to be a one-off exercise. The aim of this is to bring awareness; that is the first thing. The second thing is to do a massive haul in starting the cleaning up of our country. Thirdly, we are going to put police presence at these sites [for] those people who continuously dump their garbage… because they have no regard for the environment… and because it becomes a public health issue, and it is time we started calling these people out.”
Additionally, government will be installing surveillance cameras throughout the city to capture those litterbugs who are intent on defacing the city.
“I want to say this, the multi-stakeholder approach with the Private Sector, the Chief of Staff, the Commissioner of Police, Cabinet Officials, top corporate officials, citizens is to send the message that the responsibility resides in all of us to make a difference, and we’re starting with the city itself,” the Head of State posited.
According to President Ali, this initiative to make Georgetown safe and clean is all part of his administration’s plans to ensure the city is conducive for families.
“We also want to create a city that is family oriented, where families can come out and find a safe zone… If you saw what took place on Main Street during the [Christmas] holidays, it’s an example of the how ‘One Guyana’ spirit is built when communities interact and come together,” Ali stated.
To this end, the president’s plans to transform the entire Lamaha reserve into a ‘Guyana Walk’ with a local food court, craft and art will begin to take shape with completion of one section of the reserve this weekend.
With “Operation Clean Up” getting technical and manpower support from stakeholders, deployments have been made this morning across 13 locations including, Durey Lane, Cemetery Road, Hadfield, Sussex, Princess, Smythe and Durban Streets; Regent, Robb, Church, Camp and Sheriff Streets.
