After neighbours lodged complaints at the City Council against the Seiko Chinese restaurant, it has voluntarily closed it doors to deal with a sewage problem that the owner says has been affecting him for five years.
Yesterday, Seiko owner Ken Yang said that contrary to media reports, he voluntarily closed his restaurant so that he can address the issue. The problem is a backing up grease trap which has not been functioning for close to five years now even though he has spent some $27M on it.
“GWI has to look at it [but] they keep pushing is my fault,” a frustrated Yang said over the phone. He explained that last year the Guyana Water Incorporated (GWI) made him close his restaurant for a month to install a fat trap but it still does not work. Yang added that he whenever the fat trap acts up he calls Cevon’s Waste Management to deal with the issue but it seems as though persons in the area “feel like I suppose to do it all the time”. Yang said that he does not have a problem spending money to fix the problem but he pointed out that nothing seems to be working.
“It still backing up even though I close and ain’t cooking. I can’t tek this no more!” he said in frustration.
Meanwhile, Chief Environment Health Inspector of the Public Health Department of the Mayor and City Council, Kenneth Stephens said that the grease or fat trap of the sewage system is inadequate but noted “we are not responsible for the sewage system.”
Stephens said that it was GWI who was responsible for it but the council intervened after residents in the surrounding visited them. Calls to GWI were unsuccessful yesterday.
The restaurant is expected to reopen on Monday after an inspection by the Council’s Medical Officer of Health and other officials from the Public Health Department.
