Dear Editor,
Many hopeful citizens are extremely upset with the Ministry of Communities right now. What started out on a high optimistic note last week has since diminished into disappointment, anger, and unfavourable comparisons with the previous government.
The weekend housing exhibition/open house about offerings to come on stream at Perseverance, East Bank Demerara were well attended and very well received. Workers, taxpayers, and families desirous of locating suitable attractive housing that met their budget were intrigued and excited. That was the sense that prevailed and which was shared with me.
They were told to do a follow-up check with the Ministry of Communities located on Brickdam from Tuesday of this week. This included those whose names were already part of the old Ministry of Housing registry system. This was when the trouble commenced. Many braved the downpours of this last Tuesday, only to discover the place locked. This was neither a good start nor a confidence-building development.
When the same people returned early the next day, Wednesday, it was chaos: a huge line; no order; restless people; no movement; and no one from the ministry to offer any guidance or directions. There was not even the courtesy or empty comfort of an official providing soothing in-formation such as “be patient” or “we will get to you” or “there is a little problem”. Instead, it was the now familiar Guyanese pastime of hanging out in frozen lines, and counting down to eternity.
One adventurous citizen scaled the fence; he did not appear to have housing on his mind. One woman threw a punch at another woman, which certainly introduced a new level of discomfort to the crowd. Thankfully, a rather stout fellow promptly assumed the role of peacemaker. Things were getting ugly.
In all of this, the ministry could have done much better; it is not new to the throngs of impatient, disgusted, and disagreeable citizens. It could have been more prepared, more organized, and more oriented on how to manage an increasingly dismayed, and sometimes agitated, constituency ‒ citizens all. The ministry could have demonstrated a greater inclination to be courteous and more appreciative of taxpaying citizens. It could have been different from the old ways and the old ramshackle practices. It failed on every count. I trust that the Minister is reading this.
Yours faithfully,
GHK Lall