Now that the rainy season has started, many persons living in the Deep South area in the Rupununi are wondering how they are going to adhere to the many restrictions outlined by the Ministry of Public Health and their respective village councils to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
For communities in the Deep South Rupununi, Region Nine, which comprise Karaudarnau, Aishal-ton, Achawib, Parabara, Maruranau, Awarwanau and Shea, transporting food and fuel supplies to their respective communities from Lethem is becoming more and more difficult now that the rain has begun.
In order to access these communities, persons have no choice but to cross the Rupununi River and although two bridges currently tower over it, during the rainy season, the river overflows for miles, making it impossible for vehicles to cross, which results in persons being stranded close to the river for hours if not days.
However, although this is an issue that the communities have lived with for years, many fear that the restrictions imposed by the MoPH and their respective village councils will disrupt the delivery of much needed food supplies.
During an interview with Stabroek News, Toshao of Aishalton Michael Thomas said that flooding will not be an issue as they will be telling villagers, especially businesspersons, to stock up on food supplies and fuel before the rain starts falling more consistently. He noted that one of the COVID-19 restrictions that the Aishalton village council has imposed on the community is all unnecessary travelling is prohibited and if someone must travel, they will only be able to do so on Mondays and Fridays but they must be back in the village by 6 pm on that very day.
He noted that while all the Deep South communities will be affected, at this stage his plans are only for his village but if the South Rupununi District Council steps in, that might be the plan for all the other communities.
That particular restriction, according to Sabrina Gomes, was already tough to abide by considering that it takes four to five hours to travel from Aishalton to Lethem, leaving limited time to shop. Now, travelling during a limited time period will be “almost impossible because of the unpredictable weather patterns, the bad roads and the overflowing rivers,” Gomes said.
Antonio James said, “Persons who are travelling to and from their communities will take longer to reach their destination and it will be difficult to reach the checkpoints before the curfew kicks in and they close the gates.”
He added that he made a trip to Lethem last week and was surprised at the state of the roads even though the rain started falling earlier this month. Due to this, he noted that he took approximately seven hours from his village to Shulinab when he would usually take three hours.
Regardless, he said, many people do not have a choice but to travel if they want their families to survive. He added that no discussion was made to address these issues nor was the opinion of residents considered before many restrictions were imposed. “I think this is a unique scenario that calls for some sort of intervention as it relates to the 6 pm curfew because the weather has changed and things will be much harder. It doesn’t have to be lifted but if someone reaches their community after six, they should be allowed in as long as they are residents,” he said.
James said that other village leaders are also threatening to lock down South Rupununi communities completely and he said if such a measure is to be implemented, a system should be in place to address many of the issues that residents are currently facing. He pointed out that Lethem is the only place in the region where communities can go to get their food supplies.
Meanwhile, Gomes, who resides in Aishalton, said that she is currently unaware what the village council is putting in place to address the situation but disagrees with Thomas’ plans as most persons do not have the space or equipment to store food supplies. In addition to that, she said no one has a vehicle to transport a huge amount of food supplies at one time. “We can only buy stuff that can last for one week. Rainy season is always the hardest season to deal with,” she stated.
Like James, Gomes agreed that the curfew should be relaxed for persons who are travelling to get food supplies. She explained that in the past almost every time they tried to leave and return to their villages the same day, they would usually get stranded at the Rupununi River for days, resulting in their food supplies spoiling. She said this is usually a huge financial loss. “So every time we have to travel, we have to take a risk,” she added.
A few days back, she recalled, she arrived at the gates of her community after 6 pm and was locked out and couldn’t enter until 6 am the next morning. “It is really unfair for people to go to their own communities to be locked out,” she said before adding that if she was a stranger who was just passing through, she would’ve understood.
