STABROEK NEWS, NOVEMBER 22 --- The Trades Union Congress today said that the government must be held to account over the misery caused by ongoing flooding.
The TUC statement issued today follows.
The Guyana Trades Union Congress is fed-up with what is passing for governance and calls on the citizens/workers/electorate to register their disgust with the current management of the affairs of state. The continuous lost and inconvenience caused by floodwater incurred through rainfalls or high tides is a toll that carries deep psychological, health and economic casualties. The captured images of resignation, hopelessness and despair on the faces of those who have suffered and lost are heartrending. No people deserve to live under these arduous conditions, with seemingly no end in sight. Household possessions, farms, businesses, vehicles, houses, schools, persons, everything is once again affected.
The trading of blame, excuses, finger pointing, and continued absence of an effective plan to manage the numerous floods inundating this nation since 2005 is unacceptable. The citizens of this country, by and large, continue to honour their side of the social contract by obeying the laws, voting, paying their rates and taxes, yet they continue to be denied the corresponding benefits and protections. Enough is enough. It is said a people get the government they deserve. The people of this country deserve better and must demand better. Our votes must not only count at elections time but must be our reinforcing ticket to demand improved standard of living and proper stewardship of our country.
Guyana is below sea level. This nation inherited a complex and effective sea defence structure and irrigation system built by the Dutch. As an independent nation the only waterway development and irrigation this nation has seen are the construction of the Mahaica/Mahaicony Abary Development Scheme (MMA Scheme) and the Tapacuma Irrigation Projects (TIPs), both of which cry out for maintenance. There has been no further development in water management. Our sea defence structure also needs improvement. The hodge-podge approach to development continues to be to the people’s undoing.
The management of the people’s business by government officials, influenced by feelings and benefits they and their cohorts can derive, with no regard for sound technical/scientific input, has seen this nation’s waterways and drainage reduce to facilitate constructions. The effects of new designs and constructions currently taking place on the East Coast and East Bank roadways bring into question, whether such undertakings have factored in meeting the expansion in housing/buildings and agriculture simultaneously taking place, and planning for the future.
We have no control when the tides will rise, when it will rain or the amount of rainfall. We also live in a world confronted with climate change. What we have control of is putting systems in place to avoid or minimise the consequences of natural occurrences/disasters. In many instances the disasters from flooding in Guyana are man-made, the resulting effects of the government’s lack of maintenance, preparedness and defence.
There are persons who acquired their possessions through the dint of hard work, sacrifices, loans and hire purchases. The agonising pictures of possessions being salvaged or lost would not even stir this government’s conscience. The destruction of lives and properties caused by floods has increased and this is not fair. No government comprising of caring minds would be this persistently cruel to the citizenry. The Minister of Local Government, the representative face of the Ramotar administration, out there casting blame and pointing fingers must be told this government is heartless and its greatest strength is that they have no shame.
The government continues to refuse to accept that it shoulders a responsibility to avoid the fallout from the flood. And given that there were similar previous experiences, systems should have been put in place to avoid or minimise the causalities of recurrence. The citizens are hurting and our elected officials are called upon to stop the politics of incompetence. The time is long past to cultivate a Politics of Solutions. The government has a principal responsibility to the citizenry and must be called upon to account and deliver.
