Faced with high intensity rainfall comparable to levels that caused the 2005 Great Flood, the government says it is doing all it can to provide relief to inundated low-lying communities.
Government spokesmen yesterday defended the administration’s response to the flooding in Region Four (Demerara/Mahaica) during an impromptu debate in the National Assembly, accusing the opposition of trying to exploit the flooding for political mileage–a charge that was strenuously denied as the opposition sounded a warning that not enough is being done.
The debate was initiated by Opposition Leader Robert Corbin, who moved for an adjournment of the National Assembly to discuss the issue as a matter of urgent public importance. Agriculture Minister Robert Persaud, who presented a status report on the government’s response to the heavy rainfall, reported that a comparison of the total rainfall accumulated for the current month with that recorded three years ago shows that at several locations on the coast rainfall is now higher. He noted that up to last Thursday, December had seen in excess of 425 mm rainfall recorded at widely dispersed locations such as Better Hope, Supenaam, Capoey, Wales, Georgetown, Ogle, Good Hope, Enmore and Bee Hive. Persaud credited the government’s sustained efforts in drainage and irrigation since the Great Flood as being responsible for ensuring there was not a recurrence of the widespread flooding experienced in 2005. Immediately after the 2005 flood, the government established a Task Force for Infrastructure Recovery (TFIR) to implement several drainage projects in Regions Two (Pomeroon/Supenaam), Three (Essequibo Islands/ West Demerara), Four, and Five (Mahaica/Berbice) including the East Demerara Water Conservancy (EDWC) and the Boerasirie Conser-vancy to the total value of $946 million. He said too that major works, such as the new outlets for the EDWC at Kofi and the installation of six new drainage pumps along the East Coast, which were recommended from the TFIR, have been fully implemented or are in the course of being implemented within the time frames recommended by the TFIR and within the limits of budgetary constraints. Persaud noted that the current drainage system was not built to deal with the effects of climate change and declared that the cost of funding the upgrade is beyond the means of the nation. He said for only two regions, the cost for drainage adjustments amounts to US$400 million.
While noting the importance of the opposition in scrutinising the activities of the government, Persaud warned against peddling “half-truths” and “outright lies” at a time of what he called national threat. Persaud said such an approach would be dangerous and outright unpatriotic. Corbin was indignant at the implication that the opposition was trying to exploit the situation. He acknowledged the government’s intervention but stressed that his concern lay in his belief that the government does not seem to appreciate the gravity of the situation. “We don’t need fancy speeches,” he said, after expressing concern that the flooding in some East Coast villages is comparable to the 2005 Great Flood.
Corbin painted a dire picture of the situation at Bare Root, Paradise, Victoria, Bachelor’s Adventure, Dazzel Housing Scheme, Dochfour, Pourderoyen, the Canal Polders and La Retraite. In many of these areas, he said, there did not appear to be any signal that there would be any attempt to provide relief. What is more, he suggested that the government has been giving the people a false sense of security about the seriousness of the situation. “The fact is water is on the land,” he said. “There is no serious effort on the ground that a serious appraisal is being done.”
Corbin drew attention to Bare Root, where he said the people have been without access to potable water, while trying to cope with the loss of their crops and livestock. He said the situation was not a light matter and urged that the farmers receive proper compensation for their losses and for the Civil Defence Commission (CDC) to be mobilised to provide emergency relief services to the East Coast villages severely affected. “I believe that unless the facts are exposed, the nation could be deluded into believing that we are irresponsible and try to exploit the situation for political gain,” he said.
Prime Minister Samuel Hinds, however, emphasised that the government has been vigilant as the rains began. He reminded that the coastland is below sea level and said while it is now possible to drain water from the land at a greater rate than 2005, it is still difficult to cope with the unusually heavy rainfall. Hinds explained that the cost of a complete rehabilitation of the drainage system along the coastland is enormous though he said government is looking for ways to raise the US$400 million over time, in order to be able to manage the rainfall. “We are doing as much as we can within our abilities at this time,” he said, noting that the CDC has been talking water to Dochfour and other affected areas. He added that teams from the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Agriculture continue to monitor the situation and he said an analysis would be done to determine when there is need for mobilisation of the CDC. “We continue to monitor and assess the situation daily and as soon as the condition warrants mobilisation we will mobilise the CDC,” he said.
AFC MP David Patterson was critical of the fact that despite the achievements the government enumerated, the situation for villagers is unchanged. He suggested that the government’s attempt to mobilise the NDCs and RDCs to prepare for the rains was belated. Acknowledging that climate change has made above average rainfall an annual occurrence, he chided the government members for three years of preparation with little to show. “It shows short-sightedness,” he said, adding that he expected more to be done during the dry season, including a serious attempt to deal with the garbage that continues to clog the drainage system. Patterson proposed that an audit be done to verify how the money was spent and on this point he hoped that the audit of the expenditure for the 2005 flood would also be presented. He urged that the government accept the input from all stakeholders, including the opposition in order to find a solution that could provide relief to East Coast residents. “…And bring some level of comfort and not a rainy Christmas.”
Meanwhile, a debate on the motion in the name of PNCR-1G MP Aubrey Norton, dealing with having live broadcasts of sittings of the national assembly, was deferred.
