Dear Editor,
Please permit me to share what some residents in the Richmond Housing Scheme, Essequibo Coast experienced on the 23rd of April, 2022. A family hosted a party beginning on the evening of Saturday, the 23rd of April. This event was advertised for almost a month in advance on social media. Loud music with extremely heavy bass started playing from 19:00h. The bass was so heavy that the roof, the walls, the floor and even the wares in my kitchen were vibrating. There was someone screaming various phrases, slangs and expletives over a microphone every few seconds.
I placed three (3) calls to the Anna Regina Police Station to report this noise nuisance with the first call being made at 21:30h. I was told by an officer that the patrol would be informed and they would take the necessary action. Nothing happened. Music still blasted from this “party.” The second call to the police was made at 22:15h and a different officer (a female) took the call this time. I explained that this is the second time for the night I am making a report of noise nuisance. The officer related that she is now aware of noise nuisance in the Richmond area for that night and that she will inform the patrol. Still the noise continued. The third call was made at 22:44h. The same female officer who took the complaint on my second call answered the telephone again.
I enquired as to why nothing has been done about my complaint which was lodged over two hours ago. She explained that the patrol was dealing with other complaints of noise nuisance. Up to this point I was very calm in my interaction with these officers. I then simply asked the officer what more should I do since I have been enduring this disturbance for close to five hours and the police seems to not be able to do anything about it. The response shocked and infuriated me; I was told ‘do wuh yuh feel like doing.’ A male officer quickly took over the call and I had to repeat my complaint for the third time. I got no further response, the line was silent for a few seconds and then the call was disconnected.
At this point my family and I gave up on anything being done by the police and once again resorted to try to get some sleep only to be jolted from our doze by what sounded like two gunshots. We gave up on sleep from then. This torture that these people call music continued to after 06:00h the next morning. Editor, this is not the first time this has happened and it is not the first time that the Anna Regina Police failed to act on complaints of noise nuisance. The first time this particular family hosted a similar event was in August of 2021. It may sound like exaggeration but we were forced to endure the heavy bass from their music system from 15:00h on a Friday afternoon until 07:00h the next morning.
The police again seemed powerless at the time since several reports were made to the Anna Regina police station as well as the then Commander of the Division (Ms. Denise Griffith) and the family were allowed to continue to disturb the community as they see fit. I have nothing against persons hosting celebrations and events at their homes or wherever they see fit but they should not impose their noise upon others. How can we in this day and age be forced to tolerate such lawlessness? Many children live in this village, how any right-thinking adult can allow a DJ to be screaming expletives over a sound system that is spewing noise throughout the village?
Why can’t the police not do anything about noise complaints? Is the police trained to tell person to ‘do wuh yuh feel like doing’ when enquiries are being made? What are the police being paid to do? Should all other public servants be like the Anna Regina police and not do their jobs and just collect a salary at the end of the month for the sake of just showing up to work? Maybe the Anna Regina police is awaiting an occurrence of assault or bodily harm similar to when the Pandit was killed in Berbice for speaking out against noise nuisance before they do anything.
I, on behalf of the residents of Richmond Housing Scheme and other concerned residents of Region Two, respectfully request that the Commissioner of Police and the Minister of Home Affairs look into this and other complaints of non-response by the police in Region Two.
Sincerely,
Concerned Residents
Richmond New Housing Scheme
Essequibo Coast