The Guyana Sugar Corporation Inc (GuySuCo) says it views with dismay, attempts by persons unknown to disrupt operations at its Enmore and La Bonne Intention (LBI) factories within the past three weeks.
According to a release from GuySuCo, the first “act of sabotage”, occurred on September 1 at the Enmore factory when a large boulder, weighing approximately 35 kilogrammes was placed in a sugar cane punt, causing significant damage to the factory. Then on September 20, a similar act was carried out at the said factory when a chain sling was placed between sugar canes in a punt, resulting in extensive damage to equipment at the factory.
The release stated that the following day at the LBI factory, a large piece of metal from a section of the railway track was placed in a punt. However, the metal was detected at the feeder table and damage to the factory was averted.
According to GuySuCo, the positive working environment which has been prevailing over the past several weeks at its sites has primarily been responsible for the corporation achieving certain milestones, chief among those is the harvesting of over 10,000 tonnes of cane for the fifth consecutive week. As such, the release stated, GuySuco is, “at a loss for the reasoning behind” the three incidents.
The corporation stated that such incidents cause unnecessary loss of production from factory down time, which results in the corporation incurring unnecessary expenditure. GuySuCo stated that being Guyana’s oldest industry, its largest employer, and a significant contributor to the nation’s GDP, the management of the corporation remains committed to working with all stakeholders in the sugar industry to ensure its goals are achieved.
GuySuCo is calling on those responsible for the recent disruptions, “to abandon their futile agenda” and join in an effort to revitalize, modernize and secure the future of the sugar industry in Guyana.