Dear Editor,
The foundation of any aspect of social nation building is naturally supposed to revolve around the historical customs and practices of the group/s involved. The vendors at Stabroek market is no different case. It is surprising that political expediency and lack of perception on behalf of the authorities at the City Council failed to recognise this opportunity to intercept the overall mode of low national self esteem affecting our nation which the current superficial passing hype of World Cup Cricket cannot arrest.
I would have thought that taking into consideration the facts of our economic woes and the perilous direction encouraged to present a fa?e of economic activity with benefits for a questionable few, there are responsible persons who would apply a more creative and inspiring approach as an example of how to handle the economic responsibility of any group of citizens in questions.
I can remember some years ago standing at the car park with an overseas colleague around twilight when he remarked that in his travels about the Caribbean there was no other market that expressed so much life as Stabroek. I reminded him that this was possibly the oldest market in the region. I do agree that our current overwhelming unemployment has created quite a crowd of sellers, but for those who want to hold public office these are the problems they must address with skill and tact.
The vendors of Stabroek can lay claim to a historical position that is recorded from the very birth of this town. Where the Demico building is now located was once the area of the African Sunday slave market [during slavery] and after slavery free Africans used to vend their produce and imported items in these very areas [area encompassing the current Coop Bank to old New Town, most likely where they are now, based on the descriptions of early biographers]. It was because of their continuous presence that the Stabroek Market was built in the 1870s. I am not quite sure but I think that the now Stabroek Market wharf was then called ‘King’s wharf’. However, the position of the vendors sustained a heritage presence that I do not expect the relevant government authorities to know, but I somehow expected persons at City Hall to have some knowledge of, and to recognize the avenue for appropriate development in this area that includes the vendors. This is a convenient space created to showcase the very beginnings of Georgetown, what responsible people allow such opportunities to slip past. I must conclude by stating the obvious, that there is an absolute lack of ‘vision’ and ‘will’ coupled with ignorance evident with our appointed authorities that borders on disgust.
Yours faithfully,
Barrington Braithwaite
