– long-term solution being ignored, says chamber head
The electricity supply in Lethem was expected to be stabilised by yesterday afternoon, according to Region Nine Chairman Wilson Lorentino, who called for the quick replacement of the main generator as the entire community was feeling the impact of the erratic power supply.
The business community has also decried the situation, with President of the Rupununi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (RCCI) Jacqueline D’Aguiar saying that despite numerous calls for a long-term reliable electricity supply for Lethem, this has not happened and residents are fed-up of the situation.
Up to early yesterday afternoon, the community was experiencing prolonged power outages after a generator failed on Thursday, the latest in a string of power woes that has plagued the community on the Guyana-Brazil border. “I was told that the part that broke was flown to Georgetown and should be back by this afternoon [yesterday afternoon],” Lorentino said when contacted by Stabroek News.
He said he was told by the engineer that the generator which failed should be back in operation then as the part was expected back yesterday. The main generating set failed about two months ago and since then the growing town has been powered by two smaller generators but the community experienced constant blackouts since the generators could not cope with the demand.
Lorentino said Prime Minister Samuel Hinds, at a recent meeting in the town, said that a generator would be purchased but it would take about three to four months to bring it into the country. He called for action to be sped up, since the entire community is feeling the impact, including businesses.
“We are asking that it [the generator] be replaced early,” he said.
D’Aguiar, meanwhile, told Stabroek News that since August, at about the time of the sustained protests in Linden, the community has been receiving less than 24 hours of electricity per day and despite officials saying that the situation would be rectified “it hasn’t gotten any better.” Up to yesterday, she said, different sections of the community were receiving power for six hours daily on a rotational basis. “Even the six hours, you getting cut off before the six hours [are up],” she added.
“Everybody is disgusted with the whole scenario,” she said while pointing out that the situation has only worsened recently. The RCCI president said that a lot of businesses have been affected and there have been some losses. She noted that some persons could not restock certain goods and while some had their own back-up generators, these could not be turned on indefinitely.
D’Aguiar said they have been told that a new generator could be in place by January next year but they were also told that by December 15, the community could be receiving electricity on a 24 hours basis. “But the engine is yet to be bought so it’s up in the air,” she said.
The RCCI president said the electricity situation has impacted negatively on the community not only in terms of businesses but also construction since for welding and other works, there needs to be a power supply. The population of Lethem has rapidly expanded in the last two and a half years, she noted, while saying that the chamber has been actively advocating for a long-term improvement of the electricity supply but such a plan is not yet in place.
According to D’Aguiar, in the past, the chamber had asked for a representative on the Board of the Lethem Power Company and this has been granted but the one recently appointed has no chamber representative and they had written to Hinds about this and received a response about eight weeks ago saying that their views were being given consideration. “I don’t know what consideration they are giving us but we have no positive response,” she said.
The businesswoman also noted that one of the problems being experienced is the road works being carried out in the vicinity of the power company. The businesswoman said that the engineer has reported that the dust clogs the air filters contributing to problems while it also affects other sections of the community. Some workers have even been forced to wear face masks at work and despite complaints to the authorities, nothing has been done for close to three weeks and the contractor is not doing anything to keep the dust down either, she said. D’Aguiar added that the Environmental Protection Agency had responded in a letter to a complaint but no action has been taken.
