Shoddy road works

Dear Editor,

Shoddy work: Prior to the general elections of 2011, communities, whose roads were neglected for decades, saw strange faces, vehicles, material and manpower converging on their villages.
Maxwell Johnson, GC August 7, in his article spoke about shoddy work, and a lack of supervision.

A look at Roxanne Burnham Gardens two years later, is a prime example of (a) shoddy work, (b) lack of supervision, and my observation (c) an attempt by the politicians to woo neglected Afro- Guyanese communities to vote for the incumbent party.

The road works were poorly done and in most instances incomplete or not begun; a terrible waste of taxpayers’ money.

Traversing the streets of Roxanne Burnham Gardens, one will come to the realization that the community was well aware of point (c), therefore the shoddy work was not unexpected.
Local government elections: Whilst the politicians blame each other for the inability to hold  local government elections the citizens of Georgetown continue to suffer. The majority of roads in the city have developed potholes (soon to become craters); alleyways outside central Georgetown are neither cleaned nor desilted (check Roxanne Burnham Gardens).

My fear is, that when we do have local elections, the same bunch of councillors who now grace the august chambers of City Hall, will return.

Domestic violence: The key note or first degree of a musical scale is known as the tonic. The tonic triad is a group of three notes. Domestic violence has three terrible notes: poverty, alcohol, and police indifference when reports are made.

Have you ever noticed the living conditions of the victims (our women) of domestic violence?  Have you ever read, about the agonizing and painful plea of the victims (our women), who tearfully beg the magistrate, not to impose a custodial sentence on their aggressor, because he is the sole breadwinner, and provider for the family?

1823 Monument: Congratulations to Mr Ivor Thom on a splendid piece of work, the 1823 Monument. To me, it epitomizes, defiance, agony, a quest for freedom, and the beauty of the African (male and female). The central figure looks to the east, welcoming the rising sun, whilst viewing the spirits of his fellow Revolutionaries of 1823. He is also within earshot of the great Atlantic, which sometimes is blown into a fury, or asleep, and over which his enslaved and chained brothers and sisters were brought to these shores.

The site is beautiful, and maybe, who knows, on a clear moonlit and starry night, one may see a gathering there, of those who lost their lives during the Middle Passage and in the 1823 Uprising.

Yours faithfully,
CS Vaughn, Major (rtd)