Dear Editor,
The construction of new roads and the maintenance of existing ones seem to be a colossal problem throughout the length and breadth of Guyana. People are complaining in many areas about bad roads, not just those in new housing communities, but also ones that have been in existence for many years.
It’s very hard to comprehend the logic and plans for news housing areas whose residents struggle for years without water, electricity and, of course, telephone services, and then have this compounded by deplorable roads. It is punishment not deserved. I have been following the protest at one of our locations that has roads that are mostly in a very deplorable state. I have frequently travelled that road in the past, so I know firsthand of the conditions.
Roads, as we all know, are about development; without proper roads then progress, commercial and otherwise would be retarded. Communities need to be the recipients of decent access into and out of their places of abode, and businesses in these areas need to have easy egress and ingress to supply goods and services without the burden of additional costs for transportation.
I live in a new housing area and there are two entrances in and out of the communities of Herstelling. South of Herstelling is Plantation Farm, which has one entrance obliquely opposite the vulcanizing shop on Herstelling Public Road and north of the Hindu Temple, and the other entrance on the extreme northern side next to the Roger Khan scheme. Both roads are in a bad state.
I hastened to occupy my plot of land by constructing our house less than a year after possession of the land, because the Ministry of Housing at that time stipulated a period in which construction had to start. We lived there, our only residence, for three years without water (we now have) and electricity (none up to now), and now we are saddled with deplorable roads as well.
Before May 2015 the roads used to be graded regularly by the contractors, but now residents are left to languish with vehicles being damaged daily. Those who do not own a vehicle and have to depend on a taxi service have to walk though this slushy road since drivers do not want to risk their cars being destroyed by the potholes.
I trust that those responsible would take note of my letter, and action would be expedited so there won’t have to be protest action to get attention.
Yours faithfully,
Ivan John
