Dubai is one of the wealthiest places in the world and since oil was found in Guyana there are those who have been referring to Guyana as Lil Dubai. Perhaps thinking that because Guyana is so blessed with oil, that we too will become a nation that can flaunt its wealth like Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.
Thursday morning in Lil Dubai the water was trickling again. How long will it take for oil wealth to fix our water woes since it is supposed to fix everything? Maybe I am becoming a part of the deluded with a hope and a prayer that oil and gas will fix everything, that the excess flaring will not have any negative effects on the environment and that Guyana will not be in a worse state of poverty when the oil wells deplete.
As I stood by the sink and the water continued to trickle, I felt like a dark cloud was hovering but perhaps it was the lingering discomfort caused by the two blackouts the day before. Soaked in sweat because the breeze was not flowing like hope through the concrete and wooden buildings, I thought that maybe this year blackouts will end. Not only because oil will fix it, but next year we have elections! What else are we to do when hope is lost but begin hoping again? As I fanned my three-month-old niece who was starting to fret from being hot and uncomfortable because of the heat and blackout, I thought Lil Dubai does not even spare the babies and children.
