Dear Editor,
I recently went to visit my father’s place of birth in Port Mourant, Berbice and moving around the area and listening to some residents, it is indeed shocking and painful to see the disrespect, disdain and apparent disinterest that this PPP/Civic government has for the community in the Port Mourant area… come on, PPP government, please do something for your erstwhile supporters in President Cheddi’s birthplace.
Editor, there are water shortages and no water at all for days in Port Mourant (and I am sure many other places); electricity blackouts happen quite a bit; the road to the Jagan house is in total disrepair; the playground needs fixing for the kids and adults; crime and drug use is on the increase; decent jobs are not available in the whole of Berbice; turnkey homes for sale to poorer people (for 6 million dollars) are of the poorest quality after being subcontracted out to low life contractors with no conscience for the plight of poorer buyers; garbage collection and sewage concerns are obviously low in the minds of Port Mourant’s NDC; the Port Mourant market, which is a legendary place for shoppers from all over Berbice, is in urgent need of reorganization with minor repairs to make it more attractive and business oriented; the Port Mourant horse race track needs urgent repair and proper maintenance as it is an iconic part of the whole of Berbice and has well-attended races; the main waterway in Port Mourant where my father swam as a little boy is so filthy and slimy that a person with a pet alligator wouldn’t allow it to enter that “trench” which residents have to live with
Editor, I would like to appeal to President Ali to address these problems facing the residents of Port Mourant who, almost to a person, told me that how come the birthplace of President Cheddi is so neglected when it should be a model of development for the whole of Guyana. Unfortunately, the situation in Port Mourant is indicative of the general neglect facing the people of Guyana and oil money should be primarily spent on the people’s welfare, regardless of race, religion or class distinction with more money allocated to the poorer sections of our country.
Roads, highways, stadiums and other mega projects should be secondary to the peoples’ communities and where our people live should become their pride and joy if emphasis with our oil resources is placed in these places to give Guyanese a sense of belonging, which will increase productivity nationally and propel poorer people in an upward spiral. With emphasis on real community development and increase in wages, our people will be less inclined to migrate abroad – migration is like a terminal disease as it is slowly killing any progress we can achieve Our President is young and hopefully a resourceful individual who has a chance to emulate President Cheddi’s commitment to poor people but he must act now – words drift with the wind while action controls the wind – we need action, now! Port Mourant residents said that President Ali visits many countries quite frequently but doesn’t visit the birthplace of the man who really nurtured his ambitions, whose name is called repeatedly during general elections every 5 years- President Cheddi .
Yours sincerely,
Cheddi (Joey) Jagan (Jr)
