Some 40 angry Bourda Market stallholders marched down to City Hall yesterday, where they accused the Mayor and City Council (M&CC) and the Public Health Department of dragging their feet in the post-flood cleanup and sanitizing of the market.
Record rainfall on Thursday resulted in the market being flooded, like the rest of the city, and it could not be opened for business.
On Thursday and throughout the weekend, some vendors in the ‘green’ (vegetable/fruit section) quickly set up mobile stands along North Road and Robb Street, which made it difficult for vehicular traffic to get by. However, stallholders in the market itself were denied access into the market. They became furious yesterday when, after they would have accessed their stalls to assess the damage and try to salvage whatever they could, they realized that the market would again, not be open for business.
What the stallholders are claiming is that the M&CC and the Public Health Department had ample time to clean and sanitize the market from when the water would have begun to recede on Friday afternoon and to get systems in place so that when they turned out yesterday, they would have been able to do business. They also complained about the rent arrangements since they weren’t able to do business, they didn’t think it was fair to pay the full rent.
It was after customers were yesterday denied entry to the market by members of the City Constabulary that the vendors rallied on the eastern side of the market where they began their walk to City Hall.
Acting Town Clerk Carol Sooba met the vendors and told them that the spraying of the market had commenced as well as the removal of the garbage that was piled up at various points. But Sooba was quickly corrected by the vendors who stated that there were no spraying being done.
She then made several calls in the presence of the vendors, instructing persons on the other end of the line to “double up” on the work being undertaken so that the vendors could return to their livelihoods.
“And I will tell de people [vendors] to hold y’all accountable if y’all can’t function,” Sooba said on the phone.
When the vendors asked about the rent arrangement and if they would have to pay the full amount of rent since they couldn’t sell for almost three days Sooba replied, “…We will discuss it because y’all already sell three weeks. We gun discuss that. Y’all don’t push it too far and be unreasonable.”
She later informed the vendors that after the spraying of the market things will return to normal for vending.
Deputy Mayor Patricia Chase-Green told Stabroek news yesterday that she wasn’t aware of the situation since she had passed the market on Thursday and it was closed due to the flooding, which she said was understandable. As regards the cleaning, an emergency meeting was held on Friday for discussions with the Solid Waste Director and the City Engineer as to how they will move forward.
Chase-Green said she had received a message from Sooba which was relayed by the Deputy Town Clerk Sharon Harry-Monroe, which said that they would be working all weekend to deal with the emergency.
“I don’t know what the plan is because we weren’t informed,” Chase-Green said. “How much will it cost to have a cleaning for the market? I do not know, and under normal circumstances for the market to be closed for so many days it ought to be gazetted.”
Vendors in the vegetable/fruit section were assessing their losses yesterday morning, while some were seen working along with vagrants to clean the drains and their surroundings.
Satwantie Narine, a vegetable and fruit vendor, told this publication yesterday that since Thursday she wasn’t able to sell since flood waters were above knee height.
“Since Thursday now I come back to sell, no council or nobody come tell we nothing. Is them junkies I pay to clean up this place and we can’t use nuff water to wash because the drains already full… Rain or sun we still have to pay rent for our stands, $4000 for a double stand and $600 for an additional stand to put de fruits on,” Narine said.
Jasoda Betal, who sells fruits, said she pays rent and a cleansing fee and she still had to take part in the cleaning.
“All meh tangerine and mangoes spoil. All water soak and rotten in the water. How I will get back money? I got to depend on this lil savings I got,” Betal said.
Further down in the market a seamstress was busy working away on her machine. Shellene Douglas said she wasn’t able to work since Thursday and even though she didn’t have much losses, she had a lot of catching up to do because clients are continuously calling.
“The drainage is bad, terrible. They need to improve the draining now. This isn’t the first time; once bitten twice shy. Since that big flooding [2005] I does put meh things high,” the seamstress said.
It was unclear when the market would be reopened since the spraying and sanitizing of the market was scheduled to be finished by 3 pm yesterday. When Stabroek News revisited the market at 3.30 pm, padlocks were seen on the gates.
