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Thousands without potable water at East Canje

January 31, 2019

Three pump stations, which serve the East Canje, Berbice Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) communities are not functioning, leaving thousands of residents without potable water.

Residents at the Adelphi Pump Station trying to get water

The shutdown occurred on Friday last and five days later, residents are still seeking answers from both the Guyana Water Inc (GWI) and Guyana Power and Light (GPL).
The pump stations at Sheet Anchor, Canefield and Adelphi went down at the same time but when contacted, the water company remained silent on the issue. The only access to potable water was Guyana Sugar Corporation’s (GuySuCo’s) pump at Adelphi.
Chairman of the Number 38/Ordinance/Fort Lands Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC) Roy Jaffarally told this publication that persons have tried to get information from him on the situation, but he has no answers about the total shutdown of water supply in two NDC areas affecting residents as far as Palmyra. He added that this is so because the water company is not forthcoming with information on what has happened.

Chairman of the Number 38/Ordinance/Fort Lands NDC Roy Jaffarally

“Nothing is forthcoming from Dr Van-West Charles or his officers. The operators at GWI has been taking the phone off after being bombarded with phone calls and correctly so. People are concerned and they are also been bombarding the Chairman and I have no answers for them because honestly I don’t,” Jaffarally stated.
According to Jaffarally, while thousands of residents are inconvenienced, the two utility companies – GWI and GPL – are both blaming each other for the shutdown.
“He is not sending his officers on the ground to ensure that residents are comforted in some way so they will know when water will be coming and GWI is playing the blame game with GPL. GWI says it is a power problem while GPL is saying that GWI needs to install a piece of equipment to regularise the voltage coming so that the pumps can be operated properly. No one is giving me pertinent information for me to be able to inform the residents,” the NDC Chairman said.
The NDC Chairman has expressed concern about sanitation, noting that there could soon be an outbreak of disease because of the lack of water in ten villages.
“Prior to the total shutdown of those three pumps on Friday last, water was intermittent for months. It only runs for a little period in the day and then the pump will shut down. So it was an ongoing problem like a sore and then all of a sudden ‘boom’ it exploded and there was one total shutdown of all the pumps,” he said.
However, residents are suspicious, saying that the probability of three pumps situated in three different villages shutting down raises eyebrows.

Replies sorted oldest to newest

NehruBig Mouth Member

Nothing new under the Apartheid Regime!!!

1/31/1912:54 PM

Former Member

Nehru posted:
Nothing new under the Apartheid Regime!!!

This is temporary and it's for a good reason to give lazy-people from Canje the practice of survival skills. I did that for years in my life and never complain, much less to blame anyone. When all you want to talk about hardship, yall must experience hardship. Neemakarams, lazy bastard all you.

1/31/191:13 PM

NehruBig Mouth Member

Wait till i catch yuh on Liberty ah 2 Patkay yuh gun get

1/31/191:18 PM

Former Member

kp posted:
Thousands without potable water at East Canje
January 31, 2019
Three pump stations, which serve the East Canje, Berbice Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) communities are not functioning, leaving thousands of residents without potable water.
The NDC Chairman has expressed concern about sanitation, noting that there could soon be an outbreak of disease because of the lack of water in ten villages.
“Prior to the total shutdown of those three pumps on Friday last, water was intermittent for months. It only runs for a little period in the day and then the pump will shut down. So it was an ongoing problem like a sore and then all of a sudden ‘boom’ it exploded and there was one total shutdown of all the pumps,” he said.
However, residents are suspicious, saying that the probability of three pumps situated in three different villages shutting down raises eyebrows.

It begs the simple question ...

"Given that the issues were evident for a long time, what has the NDC Chairman and staff doing since that time."

Perhaps -- "twiddling their thumbs yet collecting pay at month ends".

1/31/191:20 PM

kpHonorary Member

When the PNC controls the flow of water and electricity to a dominant Indo village, they control the people lives. Burnham Ban essential food stuff, Granger cutting necessities for basic survival.

1/31/192:12 PM

kpHonorary Member

Berbicians protest state of

New Amsterdam Hospital

HARD TIMES UNDER PNC!!

January 31, 2019

…calls for removal of CEO

By Andrew Carmichael

Residents of New Amsterdam, Berbice and surrounding areas are calling on the Government to address the rapidly deteriorating condition at the New Amsterdam Hospital after an elderly patient died on Tuesday night after she was reportedly given nine injections.
Additionally, the residents are alleging that several critical pieces of equipment are out of order in addition to a shortage of basic medicine leaving them to come to the conclusion that the state of the institution’s affairs is not being properly managed. As a consequence, they are calling for the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Dr

Protestors on the picket line in front of the New Amsterdam Hospital

Samantha Kennedy’s immediate resignation.
The residents turned out in their numbers and staged a picketing exercise in front of the hospital’s compound while chanting “The CEO must go” for several hours as they marched to have their concerns addressed.

Major concerns
One of the major concerns for patients is the amount of time they spend in the Outpatient Unit. Some persons have reported that they have to wait for up to 15 hours before they can see a doctor, resulting in additional stress to their already worrying condition. Other patients have reported that they would leave the hospital without ever being examined by a physician because of the length of the waiting

The protesters calling for the CEO to be removed

time.
Additionally, persons are reporting that school-aged children are no longer being viewed as a priority whenever they visit the Outpatient Unit since it is currently merged with the Accident and Emergency Unit. The move of merging the two units was reportedly implemented by the CEO which has caused a lot of issues due to the sheer lack of competence according to the patients.
Sheriann Beharry told this publication that her son suffered a broken arm at school on Monday and was taken to the New Amsterdam Hospital at about 13:00h.
“We were there from 1 O’clock till 4 O’clock. Then the CEO came and spoke with

one of the doctors and then next thing I know is that they give me the paper and say that I have to go outside and wait because the child is not an emergency,” she explained.
She further explained all of this was said and done while her child was in obvious pain in addition to his rapidly swelling arm.
“We were there from 4 O’clock after that until 9:30 (21:30h) the night then a doctor came and did the X-ray… It is very bad. From 1:00 that child cry for pain until 9:30 we leave the hospital. There were children there with fever and until one of them get a fit, then they look at the kid,” the woman related.
After the doctors would have tended to Beharry’s son’s arm they were told to return the following day to collect medication but when they returned they were shocked to discover that apart from paracetamol and vitamins the pharmacy lacked all the other prescribed medications. They had to visit a private pharmacy where they purchased the meds.
Meanwhile, Seepaul Ramlochan, whose brother’s body was left to decompose at the hospital’s mortuary, which was out of order was also on the picket line.
“Friday gone I was at the hospital. I came to see a doctor because I have a cyst on my neck and a nurse told me that I cannot see the doctor,” Ramlochan related.
One of the patients at the institution related that the previous week she was also there and told the doctor she was ordered to see that she had an injury. She added that without examining the injury, the doctor prepared an injection for her.
“So I ask the doctor what the injection was for and he told me that it was for pain; but I never told the doctor that I was feeling pain,” she related.

Nine injections
Sooroojdia Dookeram, 69, was taken to the New Amsterdam Hospital on Tuesday evening by her daughter Vlanis Ramkishan complaining of stomach pains. The grieving daughter is alleging that after they were able to see one of the doctors on duty, her mother was given five injections.
“He give her the injections without testing anything. Then she start to vomit and he give her two more… I ask him those two are for what and he say it is for the vomiting. After she get those two she start to flatter like a fowl and then he give her a bottle of saline with two more injection…she died,” Ramkishan recounted.
The family is calling for an investigation into Dookeram’s death.
Head of the Regional Health Committee, Zamal Hussain was also on the picket line. According to him, the new system of registering persons seeking health service is a cause for concern. He says the confusion and long delays is as a result of incompetence.
He said that the merging of the Outpatient with the Accident and Emergency Unit has resulted in persons having to wait for a longer time to receive medical attention. Hussain told this publication that the Ultrasound Machine at the medical facility is non-functional while there is a shortage of medical supplies.
Efforts by this publication to get a comment from the CEO of the hospital were futile.

1/31/192:28 PM

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Thousands without potable water at East Canje

Three pump stations, which serve the East Canje, Berbice Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) communities are not functioning, leaving thousands of residents without potable water.