Gross misinformation was peddled by the Region Nine Vice-Chairman

Dear Editor,

I am compelled to offer some clarity to some gross misinformation peddled as truth by the Regional Vice Chairman, Mr. Karl Singh, at a press conference hosted by the PPP, and dubbed “Parliamentary Opposition Press Conference,” held on Friday 2019-10-11, and aired by Newsroom. I am so compelled since I was mentioned by both name and appointment.

The assertions made by the Regional Chairman of Region One were supported by the Vice Chairman Region Nine as also happening in Region Nine and he raised issues of his own, are as follows:

1.   Ministers of Government touched down in the Rupununi recently with ten aircraft;

2.    Revenues coming out of the hinterland Regions should be ploughed back into the said Regions;

3.            Government has not visited the hinterland Regions since 2015;

4.            RDC Statutory meetings not being kept;

5.            RDC being stymied;

6.            “Hand-outs” distributed to villages being reclaimed by Party members;

7.            Food for the Poor donations being used for campaign purposes;

8.            Civil Defence Commission was approached during PPP’s tenure to assist  

 communities in times of emergencies, but not so under this present Administration;

9.            Education is in chaos in the Region;

10.          Aishalton Village Council was forced to build school furniture for the school in their village;

11.          Members of the Administration being rejected by many villages;

12.          The Region has only realized only 45% of its Public Sector Investment Programme;

13.          Payments to vendors of the RDC are slow and incompetent;

14.          Discrimination against contractors perceived to be PPP supporters;

15.          No feedback from Public Procurement Commission into investigation requested by the RDC;

16.          Uneven allocation of funds among villages;

17.          The school feeding programme was expanded under the PPP;

18.          There was no Government-sponsored Housing programme over the last four years;

19.          There was no provision of water services in the Hinterland;

20.          There was no expansion of the Agriculture programme in the hinterland over the last four  years;

I will lead off with the recent Ministerial Outreach to Region Nine.

All of the Ministers, with the exception of those that visited the North Rupununi, touched down in Lethem with the regular Trans Guyana passenger flights. A check with the airline will confirm this. Because of the limited space of the airstrip at Annai, the Ministers had to use smaller airplanes hence the charter to that location.

Conversely, check the period 2000 to 2015 and see how Ministers and other high-ranking government officials travelled around the country.

Both officials raised the issue of ploughing back revenues into Regions to aid development of those Regions. While an excellent idea, one needs to examine the previous administration’s record on this.

I was Assistant REO in Linden from 1999 to 2005. I am aware of the many protests that Lindeners had to engage in to get a fair share of the National Pie. Linden was virtually starved of resources even as most of the lumber resources were extracted from that Region.

I am aware that Mahdia was so neglected that even potable water was a luxury, while the roads were reduced to rubble. This was despite the fact that Region 8 was the leading contributor to the National economy in the area of gold and diamonds extraction.

By these officials’ logic, Regions 8 and 10 ought to be more developed than Regions 6, 3, and 2.

In relation to government not visiting hinterland regions since 2015. This assertion has exposed the very limited knowledge about government, by these officials.

Editor, even Primary School students know that government has 3 branches. The Executive branch is further divided into the Elected Officials and the Permanent Executive.

As elected officials, the Regional Chairmen and Regional Vice Chairmen are part of the elected arm of government. The constitution of Guyana further mandates that the development agenda of RDCs must be in keeping with that of Central Government’s.

Consequently, these officials’ visits to the various parts of the Regions are indeed visits by the government of Guyana. Additionally, these officials are paid out of the Consolidated Fund of the State of Guyana and are as such obligated to represent the agendas of the RDCs which should be in sync with that of the Government’s.

I am not aware, Editor, of any of my Officers being rejected by any Village of Region 9. In fact my Officers visit these villages on a regular basis for a number of reasons. This is another example of Government’s reaching-out to communities. I myself visited the South Rupununi from October the 3rd to the 7th and was well received by all Villages. I was able to interact with Councils and villagers alike and we were able to resolve many lingering issues.

Anyone who knows me will tell you that I will not allow any donations to villages by government to be reclaimed by Party Officials.

What I am aware of, is the fact that a Farmers’ Group in Parikwarinau had petitioned the Regional Administration for a boat and engine to assist them to get their produce from their farms across the Sawariwau River to their village. That boat was handed over to them on the recent Ministerial Outreach. I am aware too, that the Toshao had wanted the boat to be handed over to the Village Council, a Council that has serious accountability issues.

The assertion that RDC Statutory meetings not being kept is another desperate gaff to deceive. In Region Nine we have had only one Statutory Meeting for the year, and that was in January, when I had just returned to the Region from Region 8.

After that, the Regional Chairman and Vice were on their regular outings in villages campaigning as a result of the NCM, and their expectations that elections would be held before the end of the year.

In fact, many visits to their offices by me were met with their absence. The Regional Vice Chairman, Karl Singh, who is also a member of the Regional Tender Board (RTB), could not be reached for his invitations to be delivered to him. As a result, he has not attended one meeting since my assumption of duties in the Region on January 7th.

Nevertheless, Minutes of the RTB were still delivered to his office. Not expecting the level of progress in the Region without his input, the Regional Chairman penned a letter to the Public Procurement Commission (PPC), requesting an investigation into unfounded allegations of the Board, but more specifically, the Chairman of the Board.

That investigation was conducted and, like the Regional Vice Chairman, I too am awaiting the PPC’s report.

In relation to donations from Food for the Poor (FFTP) being used for campaign purposes. That is another of the Vice Chairman’s delusion. A check with that organization will reveal that they are more than satisfied with the way their donations are distributed across communities in the Region. The FFTP requires strict accountability. As the Officer that has forged a relationship with the FFTP, I ensure that all communities, irrespective of their political preferences, benefit from those donations.

To illustrate, I have distributed donations to Aishalton, Parikwarinau, Shulinab, Karasabai, Achawib, Karudarnaua, Awarewaunau, Nappi, Parisharra, Shirriri, among others. None of the villages mentioned, supported the Coalition in the 2015 elections. The assertions cannot be substantiated.

Additionally, I have adopted the philosophy of teaching a man to fish as against giving him a fish. In this regard I was able to secure mechanical tillers which were distributed to both farmers’ groups and individual farmers; sewing machines were distributed to Women’s groups to enable them to sew school uniforms and, in the process, earn for themselves and families; farming implements and seeds were distributed to farmers’ groups, individuals and Village Councils.

That is why I resisted the urge to approach CDC for any assistance as the past administration would do at the slightest hint of hardships.

A comparison of the allocation for Agriculture under the two administrations will reveal who was really serious about agriculture. Since 2015 this administration has led communities to engage in climate-smart agriculture. In this regard more than 10 shade houses were constructed for the Secondary Schools and communities. The Regional Administration has encouraged communities to increase production since there is a ready market for their produce through the 4 dormitories and the School Feeding programme.

Please permit me to illustrate the amount of monies that were spent by the RDC alone: I will use 2015 to 2018 figures since 2019 is not completed.

St Ignatius Village $103,666,613

Lethem $260,173,601

Moco Moco $9,283,580

Rupertee $4,453,580

Surama $9,966,430

Toka $7,463,980

Sawariwau $1,475,300

Maruranau $9,760,145

Tiger Pond $16,124,549

Hiowa $14,600,000

Parisharra $13,500,000

Nappi $18,454,190

Quarrie $14,410,680

Annai $87,695,302

Wowetta $3,932,600

Rewa $5,276,740

Aishalton $121,901,485

Karudarnaua $14,374,240

Shulinab $42,037,264

Kaicumbay $13,800,000

Yupukari $9,668,586

Kwatamang $8,498,000

Aranaputa $56,496,379

Katoonarib $12,475,200

Achawib $27,679,683

Karasabai $14,364,663

Sand Creek $48,643,788

Total $950,176,582

Editor please allow me to inform your readership that the School Feeding programme was more than tripled in the 4 years since 2015. To illustrate:

In 2014 the school feeding programme saw 21 schools benefiting from a sum of $117,660,016;

In 2015 the number of schools did not change but the sum was $121,120,842;

In 2016, 35 schools benefited from $129,533,979;

In 2017 the number of schools climbed to 52 with an allocation of $198,485,144;

While in 2018 the amount of schools reached 64 with a total allocation of $255,195,264.

This has debunked the Vice Chairman’s assertion that the PPP had expanded the programme.

Of importance to note is that the middleman has been eliminated and villagers are benefitting directly from purchases of much needed ingredients. We are not there as yet, but with time we are aiming at  having the villages supply all the needs for the programme.

Yours faithfully,

Carl Parker

Regional Executive Officer

Region Nine