Long-suffering residents of School Street, Mon Repos, are pleading with the government to repair the road which has been in a deplorable state for at least a decade.
The street is the main access road to the Mon Repos Housing Scheme and remains potholed despite many promises made to the residents. They told Stabroek News during a visit to the community on Monday that their complaints have been treated in a “lackadaisical” manner by the Neighbour-hood Democratic Council (NDC) and the Regional Office. Efforts to contact Region Four Chairman, Clement Corlette, for a comment on Monday proved futile.
During Stabroek News’ visit to the area, large potholes were observed in the road, making it virtually impossible for small vehicles to navigate and residents expressed concern that during an emergency or a fire, the condition of the road “will definitely” hinder a rapid response. They said that the street has been in this condition for the past ten years.
A resident, Jasodra Khan, said that for the four years in which she has been living in the area, there has been little infrastructural development. “For the four years I have been living here they never do anything and since I come this road deh just so and it hard for them children, especially when rain fall,” she said. “When the rain fall this road does be like slush and then children does got fuh walk through it to get to school and by the time them reach they look like they come out of the Backdam after cutting cane,” she added.
Khan related that they were promised several times by the authorities, that the road will be repaired but they are still waiting for those promises to materialise.
Another resident, Patrick Nicholas said that he has been living in the area for the past fifteen years and during that time, the road was repaired only once. According to him, those repairs were poorly done and the reconstructed road started falling apart a few months later. “When they build back this road here it start bruck up and the many thing that cause this road to bruck up is the big trucks that does use this road fuh go into the scheme,” he said.
Nicholas recounted that the street started to deteriorate rapidly after the housing scheme aback the village was opened in 2000 due to the constant flow and weight of heavy duty vehicles. “From the inception them people nah do this road properly and now them got fuh spend more money to do it. This is just a waste of money and then when them do it this time them gon do it just like how them do it the last time,” he said. “We get plenty promise from all them party during election time and now we are still waiting fuh them do something fuh awe,” he added.
The residents related that despite several complaints made to the regional and national authorities they are yet to receive any response as to whether the road will be repaired or redone.
Mohan Samlall, another resident, told Stabroek News that he is “fed up” of the deplorable state of the road and urged immediate intervention. “With the condition of this road we can’t even walk properly at night because the place got nuff hole and lil bit street lights,” he declared. Samlall added that there are many minor incidents at nights because of the state of the road. “Because of this road we have plenty lil accident and we want it fix before anything big happen,” he emphasised.
Samlall, who was on his way to the hospital to visit his wife, recounted that a few days ago, his wife went into labour and it was “hell” to get her out of the area since taxi drivers refused to use the road. “I had to get me neighbour, who got a bus, to take she to the hospital because them taxi man ah mek styles to come in here and when them come them does want a whole set of money,” he recalled.
The man expressed hope that the government acts fast since infrastructural development has been long overdue in the area. He said that some people, who could be in a similar situation as his wife, may not be as lucky.
