Candidates for Bartica’s historic municipal elections are stepping up their campaigning for Friday’s vote amid heightened public interest over a group of independents challenging the governing APNU+AFC and the opposition PPP/C.
The Bartica Indepen-dent Green Alliance (BIGA) has created waves in recent weeks as a good showing at Friday’s Local Government Elections (LGE) could change the political dynamics in the community.
During a visit to Bartica on Wednesday, Stabroek News tried to interview candidates contesting in all nine First-Past-The-Post (FPTP) constituencies. BIGA representatives were the only ones who were willing to talk freely. Most of the APNU+AFC candidates did not want talk and some of the PPP/C candidates were also hesitant to speak.
“I thought long and hard about being involved in my community and while normally I would sit back and watch what’s happening and hear people complaining about things being done right and not happening and I see some people trying and others not, I decided to not sit on the bench this time and said I was going to get involved,” businessman Ian Beckles told Stabroek News. He said that since he has been living there for 54 years of his life he decided that it was time he got involved in making Bartica and especially his area great again.
He said his main focus, if elected, would be improving the community’s outlook and safety. “I would like to see the area being much cleaner and I intend to work with the people in the community to achieve this. There is a need for proper security where it is safe to go out and not have to think about people robbing you or breaking into your house,” he said, stating that he would form little groups that will enable the community to always feel secure.
“Where it is applicable we can have areas where we can create children-friendly spaces where children can play. As a youngster there were so many little areas where you could run about and play a sport but it’s no longer so,” he said, adding that there is a need to have a proper library that will also be equipped with the latest technology. “An e-library… Also, Bartica has school children going to school who compete in the school sports and when they go down to George-town to compete in athletics especially swimming they are at a disadvantage. We have the mighty Essequibo River but our children don’t have the benefit of a swimming pool so I would like to see an Olympic-size swimming pool constructed and properly managed so that the youngsters can learn to swim properly and compete.”
He said he is going to work with the people especially those who are not employed. “…You need to focus on how they can develop themselves and learn different skills to gain employment or even entrepreneurships,” he said.
Beckles said that one of his major long-term goals would be to bring the community itself closer. “When it comes to politics the community divides and that’s where BIGA, our group, comes in because we are a melting pot of all the different political parties. We are not here to fight any political party,” he said, stating that his party has no intention of moving from the local level.
Addressing funding, Beckles pointed out that while the town will receive money from central government via the provisions of the Fiscal Transfers Act, there will also be other avenues that will be explored to gain revenue. “Now we know Bartica has been extended and has taken in those different areas that have quarries so we will have extra revenue there. We intend to work with the various stakeholders and business people,” he added.
‘Metal, metal’
Jermaine Joseph of BIGA, representing constituency two said that his inspiration to join the race for councillor stemmed from his time staying and studying in the capital city.
“I’ve been out studying for at least 6 years straight at UG [University of Guyana] in Georgetown and I’ve been away from home and every time I come back the ideas from the exposure and studies have given me a great vision of what I know my community can be and what it is lacking. I am home and I am seeing that changes can be made and I am not in a position right now to make those changes,” he said, stating that the LGE has given him the opportunity to be able to represent his community and institute the changes he has always envisioned.
He said his primary concern was addressing the school dropouts and the unemployment rate amongst the youths. “When they drop out they go to the interior to work and others just spend their time playing on the streets, especially the school children in the afternoon because they don’t have any recreational
facilities anywhere near or anything developed,” he said, adding that he will ensure that the youths who have dropped out will gain a second change at being empowered through education through extra and night classes. “We usually have this thing when we playing football on the street and every time a vehicle coming you have to shout ‘metal metal’ and you need to ease that situation,” he said, pointing out that he will work towards developing a safe area where the youths can play freely.
“Generally we have a plan where we are seeking to start small house businesses whether it be food packaging, just something alternative from what Bartica is known for – mining. We will try to work along with the big business and see if they can finance other smaller businesses,” he said.
Focus will also be placed on the infrastructure of his community as he intends to ensure that the roads and drains are always updated and maintained. He said that from visiting the residents he has learned that there are a lot of elderly folks who are sick and plans to ensure that there are health workshops being done to ensure that all the residents are properly educated on the health issues and how to treat them.
Joseph said there is a legion of persons living abroad who are willing to help and assist in seeing progress in Bartica.
Always clogged
Tiffany Martindale, who is representing the PPP/C, and competing against Joseph stated that her drive came from her living all her life in her community and wanting to see change for her people. She highlighted the need for better roads and access to water. “The roads need upgrading and drainage. The drains are always clogged and sometimes it’s days when you don’t get water. It’s not like you can do work every day, you have to do work when you get the water,” she highlighted, stating that the water issue is something she intends to quickly address. She also added that she will ensure that the streets are equipped with enough street lights.
When it comes to youth involvement in the LGE, Bartica is lacking but Devina Persaud, representing the PPP/C and contesting for constituency 4, is trying to show what youths can do. The 21-year-old said her decision to get involved in the elections came solely from her drive to see her community improve. “I want to do something for my community because it has been neglected for so long and I wanted to make a change,” she stated, highlighting that she intends to address the infrastructure of her community. “The most important thing I want to do is to make the roads a little more upgraded and also the beach, make the beach into somewhere that’ll attract the eyes of people all over the world which will bring in additional revenue to Bartica in a whole,” she said, stating that she will make sure that the drains are upgraded along with the water issues that the community has been facing. “There’s another issue of stray animals always being on the road and I intend to make somewhere where they can be taken care of and can stay off the roads,” she added.
With Bartica aiming at becoming a green town, she said she will explore the options and ensure that all the street lights in her community are changed to solar and will also tackle the pollution issue. “I want to ensure that everyone has a bin outside that they can dispose of their garbage and even educate them on recycling… and then there’s also building a recycling plant that can also offer jobs to the people and tackle the pollution issue.”
Persaud said she is well aware of the dropout and unemployment rates of the youths in the community and intends to tackle the issue head-on. She said she will explore the options of training the under skilled and youth dropouts so that they will be marketable for more technical jobs that are around the area and can even start their own businesses.
Competing against each other in constituency 6 are APNU+AFC contestant Caramel Warren Williams and BIGA contestant Latoya Schultz.
Williams, who has been a teacher for more than 20 years, said that she has always thought about the development of her community and how she could assist. “I just need to see my community develop more and I know we would’ve been stifled for some time and we not seeing any progress basically and with this new group and since the coalition won overall we are seeing progress, at least I am,” she said.
On the other hand, Schultz, who has also been living in the community all her life stated that she is competing for a seat on the council because she believes that the people should be allowed to make their own decisions away from any national political agendas and hence she decided to run as an independent candidate with an independent group.
She said she will focus on upgrading the infrastructure in the community and making the life of the youths easier. “Around the Bamford (Point) is about two minutes away from the pump station and they hardly get water. They usually have to go down to the creek to get water and even electricity most people don’t get,” she said, stating that the first priority would be to ensure that every resident in the area has access to potable water and electricity.
Kiddies park
“We need to develop the field for youths and I want to build a basketball court for them too so they can enjoy all the sports properly. There’s a reserve and I want to build a kiddies park where the smaller children and even the older folks can go and enjoy themselves and be happy,” she said, stating that when she is done with the community it will be compared to Kitty and Prashad Nagar.
She added that a survey was done that showed that her constituency was the cleanest in Bartica and she intends to keep that up and even improve on the accolade.
Williams, however, said she would be lobbying for more street lights in the area and for bushes to be cleared since children often go home late from attending lessons. “There’s a need for potable water in some areas, roads and drains need to be fixed,” she said, stating that the field needs to be properly managed and maintained so that the youths can utilize it in a positive way. “It’s not all about me it’s what the people want in the area and that I am willing to work toward,” she said.
Tackling unemployment, Williams said she will work along with the private sector so that there can be an influx of new jobs being created which will employ more people. “The other day the privately owned Aruwai Resort employed a lot of youths from Bartica,” she noted.
Schultz added that she would get all the youths and the people from the community involved in the community projects and offer them payment in return. She also said she will work along with the business people in the community to explore new options.
While BIGA reportedly features candidates who have had ties to both APNU+AFC and the PPP/C, it is the governing coalition which could lose significant support to the group which includes Holbert Knights who was a former PNCR Chairman of Region Seven (Cuyuni/Mazaruni).
Complicating matters for APNU+AFC is the hybrid system being used for the March 18 election. Nine of the seats on the council will be determined by proportional representation while the other nine will be settled in FPTP contests. APNU+AFC and BIGA are contesting in all nine constituencies and the PPP/C in eight. In those eight FPTP contests, if APNU+AFC was to lose support to BIGA it could result in the PPP/C capturing some of those seats which would have been certainties for APNU+AFC.
The contestants:
Contesting in Bartica East (North) Consistency 1, are Ivor Melville Pastor of (APNU+AFC); Adolphus Belle for the PPP/C and Ian Beckles for BIGA.
In Constituency 2 Bartica East (South) are Jermaine Joseph for BIGA; Tiffany Martindale for the PPP/C and Orin Griffith for the APNU+AFC.
In Bartica East Central Constituency 3 are Lennox Lyte-Rankin for the APNU+AFC, and Ignatius Prowell for BIGA.
In Constituency 4 are Joan Khan for BIGA; Lloyd Garraway APNU+AFC and Devina Persaud for the PPP/C.
In Bartica West Central (South) Constituency 5, Marissa Sue for the PPP/C; Dock Supervisor Stanley Dutchin for APNU+AFC and Zulifikar Hack (BIGA).
In Bartica (West) Constituency 6, Latoya Schultz is representing BIGA while Errol Murray is appearing for the PPP/C and Caramel Williams for APNU+AFC.
In Constituency 7, Tumering- Mongrippo (West), Deborah Browne is contesting for APNU+AFC; Bisnauth Khanai, for the PPP/C and Troy Thornhill for BIGA.
In Tumering- Mongrippo (East), Constituency 8, Carol Elliott Fredericks is appearing for BIGA; David Drepaul for the PPP/C and Hazel Ann Allicock for APNU+AFC.
And in Constituency 9 Koetaru-Big Barabara are Mark Ambrose for APNU+AFC, Sonia Simmons for PPP/C and Vivian Licorish for BIGA.
