The state of the roads in the Herstelling New Scheme, East Bank Demerara is worrying some residents who are calling for them to be rehabilitated before they get worse.
Contacted Bibi Zameena Sookdeo, chairperson of the Little Diamond/Herstelling Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC), which has responsibility for the scheme, said the residents should have visited the council first to discuss the matter.
“The first step they should have taken is to come to us,” she said adding that no one from the community had visited the office. She said that when the residents visit the office then discussions will take place to see what can be done.
She said the scheme, which had previously fallen under the Sugar Industry Labour Welfare Fund Committee, had been handed over to the NDC two years ago.
Residents had told this newspaper on Thursday that the state of the roads was a cause for concern since they were beginning to crumble and potholes were beginning to appear. Some had said that the roads were not done well in the first place, hence their current state. They told this newspaper that some action should be taken to rehabilitate the roads before they get worse.
One woman, who identified herself as Shanta, said that since last year they had begun to pay rates and taxes and “now de road breaking up and nobody ain’t doing nothing”. She said she was afraid that the roads would “break up” before anything was done stating that when she moved into the scheme there were no proper roads and she did not want it to go back that way.
Sookdeo, however, asserted that only a few residents paid their taxes and argued that the council could not take other taxpayers’ money to work on the roads in that scheme. She pointed out that the council was doing some work and clearing the drains in the area and reiterated that the residents first have to come into the office and they could “come to some compromise”.
Another resident, who declined to be identified, opined that the roads were not done “up to standard” hence the fast deterioration. He declared that the contractors had said that a large sum of money was spent to construct the roads but “me ain’t pleased with the standard of the work.” One resident however, said that she had no problems with the road.
Sookdeo said the residents were “allowing heavy trucks” into the area, a point which one man had raised and had said that the council should prevent this. “We want something done before it get worse,” he declared.
