Dear Editor,
On November 16, 2016, myself, mother and grandmother who is 74 years old, reached Parika at around 13:00 hrs and was told that a boat service (name provided) was loading. We went into the boat and waited almost two hours for it to fill. When the boat was filled, it left Parika, but instead of heading to eastern Wakenaam, the captain went all the way around the island to the Transport and Harbours’ stelling which is located at Sans Souci. We spent close to 35 minutes in the rough river which we never expected. When we reached the Wakenaam public stelling at Sans Souci on the south-western side of the island, to my surprise there was no ramp for us to disembark. I am 35 years old and weigh 120lbs and had to make a very long step to disembark from the boat. I immediately began to quarrel because I was upset to know that my life was not treated with consideration by the boat service.
Notwithstanding the above, I felt the pain my 74-year-old grandmother went through to disembark from that boat. She literally had to crawl like a caterpillar with the help of six other passengers. Editor it hurts; words cannot begin to express how hurt I am. After this situation, I would never ever return to Guyana, and my grandmother holds the same view.
Permit me to ask Minister David Patterson the following questions:
- Why was the boat allowed to travel from Parika to south-western Wakenaam when it is licensed to travel from Parika to eastern Wakenaam?
- Why are passengers not allowed their democratic right to travel freely with whichever service they choose?
- What are the factors that were taken into consideration to implement a system that once failed?
In closing, I call on all the departments which caused this trouble to fix it.
Yours faithfully,
(Name and address provided)
