Dear Editor,
Essequibians are high in praise of the coalition government, Minister of Infrastructure David Patterson and the General Manager of Transport and Harbours, Ms Merchant, for seeing the wisdom in having the two Chinese ferries ply three times a day between Parika and Supenaam. This new service has eased their burden considerably. Previously the people from Anna Regina had to wake up at 1 am to catch the 4am ferry at Supenaam; the people from Charity and the Pomeroon river had to be there the whole night waiting; and since their journey is much longer, the people from Moruka had to travel one day by boat to catch the ferry.
It’s much easier now because you can sleep the whole night at home, wake up and do all your work, and then if you have a vehicle, travel two hours beforehand to the Supenaam stelling. A multitude of lorries with rice, produce and perishables can now board the ferry to Parika without hassle or being left back in long lines for another day’s travel and chaos. One businesswoman told me that she can now travel with the midday ferry to Georgetown and do all her business and return via the 4 pm to Parika the same day.
There are still some employees with the Transport and Harbours department at the Parika stelling who are in the habit of giving commuters and vehicles a hassle in the expectation of a bribe. I want them to know that one of these good days they will be up a gum tree when there are government officers who are attending board meetings in Georgetown. These employees still think that the government hasn’t changed or they cannot accept changes; some feel that they are a law unto themselves and would refuse orders from their superiors in Georgetown. I honestly feel that these employees should be transferred out of their districts.
On Sunday, May 29, 2016, at about 3 pm I was sitting in my car at Parika after returning from a meeting the day before, and I happened to witness when the ferry arrived and docked. On that midday trip I counted 20 big lorries disembarking; all were filled with rice heading to Georgetown. Previously, these lorries had to wait for another day or two with their cargo, but now they can travel 7 days a week. The farmers from the Pomeroon have the same option of carrying their farm produce to Georgetown in the same manner.
This is what you call a caring government; an efficient transportation system will encourage investment in the agriculture sector. Today we in this region are reaping the benefit of that far-sighted policy initiative.
Yours faithfully,
Mohamed Khan