A recent move to clear the parapets and drains in Blygezight Gardens have left some residents unhappy as they say the contractor did not notify them in advance of works, which have left the area in disarray.
Champa Seelochan, a resident of 45 Blygezight Gardens, Georgetown, told Sunday Stabroek that she was never informed of the cleaning of drains and parapets in the area. She said that on Thursday when the contractor and his workers started to clear the drains, and the parapets in her street she inquired about the works being done in the area and he told her to “speak to Edghill, you vote for them”.
The contractor has since denied the claim and maintains that he informed a resident of the works, in hopes that the information would be shared with others in the area.
Seelochan while she welcomes the works in her community, she believes the residents should have been consulted and in a respectful way.
The resident also said earth and sand that she and other residents bought to buttress their parapets to prevent flooding were cleared. She noted that they had received permission from the Town Council to reinforce the parapets.
Seelochan added that before the work was initiated by the contractors and his workers in the street, plants were planted on the parapet to beautify it, “There was nice grass growing. Right now the area is full of slush after they cleared the parapet,” she lamented.
She was of the view that clearing the earth from the parapet would not help to alleviate flooding in the area and that instead the government should have built the roads in the area higher.
Cedric Castelli, the contractor, told Stabroek News that he was given the contract to desilt the drains, and clear the parapets. He added that the contract stipulated that where the parapet was higher than the level of the road, earth moving equipment must be used to clear it. Castelli added that if anything is purposely cultivated by the residents and it was found to be affecting the flow of water, then the parapet would be cleared. He further noted that no resident is above the law.
He further said that before he started the works in the area, he spoke with at least one resident in each street to ensure that the residents were informed of what was happening.
Meanwhile, a resident who wish not to be named said that the contractor should have informed everyone in the street of works being done to the street. He added that he was not informed of the works being done there. However, he saw the excavator operator clearing the parapets and drains in the street, and inquired about what was happening, and the contractor explained what they were doing. He noted that he doesn’t have a problem with what they were doing but the contractor should have informed the residents because their walkways and the street had been turned to virtual slush.
Sunday Stabroek spoke to other residents in the street and they all shared the same concerns. One resident had to argue with the contractor to keep his plants that was planted on his parapet.
