Dear Editor,
Can you imagine that it has taken the inordinate delay by an NDC in disposing of the carcass of an animal on the edge of a roadway to demonstrate the degree of inefficiency by those in authority in this our beloved country? It was reported that a cow was killed by a motor vehicle on Sunday night (27th March) on the northern side of Mocha Access Road at a point about 500 yards from ‘Roadhead’. This point is also in the neighbourhood of the National Stadium, New Providence, and residential homes on both sides of the Mocha Canal. Because of the hundreds of homes in the Herstelling, Providence, and Perseverance Housing Schemes, and in Mocha-Arcadia, traffic on the Mocha Access Road is heavy all through the day. Up to Thursday morning (31st March) the carcass, now bloated, had not been removed. At this time, the nauseating smell of the putrefying animal is wafted into passing vehicles, and the drivers tend to increase speed on a crowded roadway in order to get away from the scent.
A phone call by me to the offending NDC – Eccles/Ramsburg – at about 1.30 p.m. on the Wednesday was rewarded with the answer that they were unaware of the matter. Another call by me to the Central Board of Health at about 2.00 p.m. produced the advice to call the NDC. In both cases I stressed the urgency of the matter. A second call to the NDC at about 3.00 p.m. secured the response that the office was amassing resources to tackle the problem. What resources? Mechani-cal, or financial, or human, or intellectual? A further call to the NDC at about 4.15 p.m. revealed that they were going to remove dead animal the following day (Thursday, 31st March). The carcass was covered on Thursday, 31st March. Editor, in this day and age, why must the public wait so long for prompt action in such a simple matter? It could not be a lack of financial resources! The Eccles/Ramsburg NDC embraces an area larger than Old Georgetown. Obviously, its revenue from scores of palatial homes and dozens of multi-million commercial enterprises must enable it to have the resources to adequately cater for such emergencies!
Editor, why did the Environmental Health Officer not get into the act and demand that the NDC deal with the problem forthwith? Editor, can you imagine the sort of publicity Guyana would have received if it were the time of the Caribbean Premier League finals when we want to attract tourists and other visitors, who may venture beyond the confines of their planned programmes? Editor, why did the Police, who monitor traffic on this Access Road, not demand immediate action? Furthermore, the police have responsibility to curb the practice of stray animals on roads. See Laws of Guyana, Chap. 51. Previous action by the Police would have reduced the number of strays on roads. This is not 1950s when the Demerara Company used to graze its mules on Mocha Access Road, and when Mocha/Arcadia had only two motor-cars (Lilaldrie and Joseph). The construction of more roads and of more houses requires more preventative action by the Police. At the same time, Central Government and Local Authorities must provide adequate pasturage for cattle-farmers. No longer must they graze on the roadways.
Editor, in this our beloved country, powers that be are jealous of their authority, and rightly so, but it must be understood that power also has responsibilities. The Eccles/Ramsburg NDC has no excuse for not taking immediate action. The carcass should have been removed, even if it is in the dead of night, since it is not a corpse being entombed, which action can, by law, only take place between prescribed hours. Urgent action was not optional; it was mandatory. And so, Editor, when you have power and authority, you must not be selective or dilatory in discharging your responsibility.
Sincerely,
Walter B. Alexander, A.A.
(Retired Deputy Permanent Secretary)
