The Region Six Regional Democratic Council (RDC) yesterday made a decision to take on full responsibility for the Amerindian Hostel located in Stanleytown, New Amsterdam, following reports of substandard conditions at the facility.
The Amerindian Hostel was built a number of years ago in an effort to provide free accommodation to Amerindians coming out of Berbice River communities to attend schools or transact business.
Patricia Lynch, APNU+AFC Councillor and chairperson of the RDC’s Social Development Committee of the New Amsterdam Municipality told members of the RDC at their statutory meeting that the building is in a deplorable state. In a subsequent interview with Stabroek News, Lynch said that upon vising the building, she noticed bad physical infrastructure, which those staying at the facility were forced to endure.
“Children don’t have any kind of furniture to work on, so they would have to go on the ground to do their homework,” she noted.
She also disclosed that there have been allegations of persons renting the rooms, while others were living in the area. “It was cramped,” she said. “You had relatives of the caretaker being there, other persons hanging out there, with permission from the caretaker.” She also divulged that teenagers living at the hostel would leave the compound and return at odd hours.
Lynch noted too that although there is a guard hut in the compound, there is no security guard attached to the hostel.
Region Six Chairman David Armogan said that some rehabilitation work was done on the building some time back and that there are plans to do more work. He also stated that the RDC will make representation in the 2017 budget for other necessary works to be done on the hostel at that time.
