By Cathy Richards
Following complaints by workers of the Linden municipality that they had not received retroactive payments due to them since 1999, President Bharrat Jagdeo on Saturday promised to see that they are paid.
He advised the workers to provide him with the sum owed to them and said he would take action. Jagdeo and his cabinet converged at the Watooka Club on Saturday afternoon following an outreach in Region Ten, where visits were made to Linden, Coomacka, Rockstone, Kwakwani and other riverain communities. Following an address by the President, who spoke at length of the government’s initiatives for the sustenance of the Linden economy, residents were given the opportunity to speak out on issues of concern to them.
Among the many complaints of poor drainage and irrigation, deplorable roads and flooding, was the issue of Town Council workers not receiving retroactive payments due to them since 1999, and poor wages. The workers told the president that they were frustrated by the way they were treated by the management of the Town Council over the years.
They explained that they have been constantly knocking at the doors of their managers for increased wages but never got a positive response. “I am so ashamed to stand here to publicly tell you that after working at the town council I am only taking home $24,800 and this is after they decided to put us at minimum wage a few years back”, said one worker. Another said that it has been many years since they were owed retroactive monies. The worker also charged that the council has not been paying their Pay As You Earn (PAYE) tax or their National Insuran-ce Scheme (NIS) dues.
“I think it’s time for us to disband this present IMC (Interim Management Com-mittee) and put people who really have this town at heart Mr. President. Where is the IMC chairman? He is not here today and that’s the level of interest this council does show for the people of Linden”, a resident who is a council member on the IMC, said. The issue of the town council not fully utilizing their subvention for 2008, preventing them from receiving subventions for 2009 and 2010, was also raised.
Explaining that the Town Council is an independent body which is supported by the government with the provision of an annual subvention, Jagdeo said that he is frustrated in the way these bodies are being managed. He advised the workers to provide him with the sum of monies owed to them with respect to the retroactive payments and promised to take measures to see them paid.
Meantime, the issue of potable water sparked a heated exchange between one resident and senior officials of the Ministry and the Guyana Water Incorporated. One resident displayed a bottle of murky water which he said runs from his tap. “Mr. President this is what we in Poker Street does get from we pipe for hours when the water cut off and come back on”, he said. The man was resoundingly supported by several other residents. Persons who reside in other areas at Wismar and Mackenzie also had similar complaints.
In an attempt to counter the claims of residents, GWI and Ministry officials said there has been a tremendous improvement in the water supply at Linden. The officials displayed bottles of clear water saying this is the standard being enjoyed by residents. It was during a group setting that one resident and government and GWI officials engaged in a heated exchange. “Are you calling me a liar? I didn’t get this from no drain or any dutty gutter. Is from me pipe in me house dis come from. It time y’all stop lying to people and face the facts”, one resident argued.
Jagdeo told the residents that all the issues raised would be thoroughly ventilated and when he returns in the near future, he would announce government’s plans to address them. He discussed several initiatives undertaken by the government to ensure that Linden gets it fair share despite many claims that Linden is neglected by the administration. “The recurrent budget for this region is about $1.5 billion and the capital budget is about $950M. That’s a huge budget that is operated by the RDC and some of the ministries,” said the president who pointed to government’s construction of the $2 billion Linden Hospital. “For 2010, $2.2 billion –that’s approximately US$ 11 million – will be spent for subsidy, because we are spending $50 for one kilowatt of electricity while people are paying just about $5 and $7 at the residential level. Fifty dollars we are spending, because we import fuel”, he added.
The president told residents that on a per capita basis, government is spending the most money in Region 10 in comparison to other regions. “When we spent money at the call centre we had a bad start, but now 111 people are working there. That’s 111 that have got jobs because of a government initiative. The (EU-funded) LEAP programme has helped quite a few people in the community. Citizens Bank is moving here very soon. They will start in January of 2011. We will work with them, as we have done in the past, to ensure that people have greater access in communities to banking services”, he said.
The head-of-state told residents that he will be returning to Linden in the near future to give a wider cross-section of persons the opportunity to attend his meeting. He said he was disappointed to learn from persons during his walkabout that only five persons from each community were invited to attend Saturday’s meeting. Following his address, Jagdeo announced that he was handing over the meeting to Prime Minister Samuel Hinds but due to the disapproval expressed by residents, he stayed throughout the meeting.
