Prime Minister Mark Phillips last night issued a warning to Mayor of Georgetown, Ubraj Narine to bring an immediate end to what he said was the “nonchalant approach” in managing the drainage and other infrastructure of the city during the ongoing rainy season.
In a statement, the Prime Minister voiced disgust with the mismanagement of key drainage pumps across the city after impromptu checks made on Sunday evening revealed what he said was continuing neglect and dereliction of duty, resulting in undue suffering by residents.
During these checks, the North Ruimveldt pump which drains areas including Alexander Village and North Ruimveldt was turned off, resulting in flooding from heavy rainfall over a 24-hour period.
The statement added that pumps at Church, Cowan and Lamaha streets, Georgetown and Liliendaal, East Coast Demerara were unattended by operators.
PM Phillips said “these actions by the MCC demonstrate clear dereliction of duty to the citizens of Georgetown, whom they were elected to serve. I strongly believe that this untold suffering thousands of residents are made to face yet again are as a direct result of the MCC’s laxity with managing the affairs of the city and the unconscionable, unabated political gamesmanship from the mayor, which needs to end now”.
The Prime Minister slammed the City Council for what he said was its lack of maintenance of Georgetown’s infrastructure, coupled with its continued neglect of the systems which are designed to drain water off the land and cautioned that the PPP/C government “will no longer condone such irresponsible and reckless abandonment of duty, since they are counterproductive to the government’s transformative development plan for the nation’s capital”.
