The contractor who was blamed for the removal of material from a Region Five burial ground says no graves were damaged and he owns the land where the sand was taken from.
Alvin Chowramootoo when contacted on Friday insisted that no graves were damaged at the Murphy Dam Cemetery. According to him, his section is located a distance away from the burial ground.
He said he has a bill of sale for part of the land and transport for part, all of which was acquired in 2014.
Additionally, the contractor is claiming that both a private surveyor and a surveyor from Lands and Survey visited the location following the incident and identified the area where the burial ground is located – what he described to be a “small piece.”
Chowramootoo said that there were no remains discovered in the sand which was dug and further claimed that persons started to use the burial ground only between 2014 – 2015. Nevertheless, he insisted when pressed that no grave was damaged.
Furthermore, he said that persons from the area offered to identify the grave for relatives who were not present during the burial of their loved ones, which he claimed is still there, and added that a DNA test could easily prove that the grave is of their relatives.
Chowramootoo in order to support his claims also argued that none of his workmen would have agreed to dig a grave site and would have quickly left the job if he had demanded they did so given how easy it currently is to secure truck-driving work. Meanwhile, Commander of Region Six, Kurleigh Simon on Friday confirmed that the file which was sent for advice as it relates to the investigation into the removal of sand from the Murphy Dam Cemetery in Region Five, has not yet returned to the division.
In October, Simon had said that an investigation was launched and a file was sent for advice. He had said that the file was later returned and there were some matters that needed to be cleared up among the parties involved.
However, in late November, he confirmed that the file was sent back for advice.
In October, the Regional Vice Chairman, Rion Peters had said that he had received reports that “some individuals” were doing excavation in the Murphy Dam Cemetery.
As such he decided to check on the situation where he discovered “residents who were in grief and who were dissatisfied.”
According to Peters, he was very surprised that persons would want to carry out such an act in a cemetery the “final resting place” for the deceased.
Peters had stressed that based on the Rosignol/Zeelust Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC) layout (plan) the area is officially identified as a communal burial ground as he stressed then that the police have been contacted.
Clarifying that to his knowledge the individuals involved had no contract with the RDC to supply sand, Peters had said, “There is a lot of construction going on so I’m not sure if this sand is being sold to private persons or contractor or what but the fact remains that the issue at hand is that the sand was removed from a cemetery and it is affecting the community.”
Several residents who had gathered at the location after the discovery had said that the graves of their relatives cannot be found.
Immediately after the discovery, Vanessa also known as “Vanu” had relayed that her husband passed away in June and was buried at the location, however, they cannot find his grave since the excavation, she had said. “We get message that somebody digging out and when we come nothing na here, just the hole we seeing, not even one piece board, nothing, nothing.”
Another villager, Rajendra Victor, 64, explained that several other tombs are missing. “More people bury here and them can’t find them… Last week Saturday me come a back dam and see them a dig with a hymac and them move out that one heap sand and them na move this one… Them a time people and try to move it and abbay loved ones them bury here, me father, me mother, me sister all bury here”, he said.
According to Victor, decades ago four residents came together and handed over the land for the burial ground. “When rain fall all them tomb wa left go wash down, them na supposed to do that to come and destroy the burial ground”, he lamented.
Another relative, Juliet Dukhi had written a letter to Stabroek News expressing how distressed she was as she tried to grapple with the situation. She highlighted that one of the graves was the resting place of her mother and this event has left her drained emotionally and psychologically.
“Why did he continue to allow residents to continuously bury their loved ones there? Why didn’t he erect a notice that it’s private property? If he owns this land why is the Rosignol NDC selling the burial plots and not him? Why didn’t he inform the residents that he owns the land and it will be dug up and the sand removed/sold? These residents I refer to are from the catchment area of Cotton Tree Village on the northern end which includes the neighbouring villages on both sides as well as those at the Southern end under Blairmont/Gelderland such as Plantain Walk and Shieldstown“, she stated in the letter.
Dukhi in a subsequent interview had told Stabroek News that she was disappointed and frustrated at the way in which the matter is being handled as she questioned where her mother’s remains are.
The woman said that following the discovery there was a meeting held where the contractor responsible was present, and according to her she approached him questioning whether he can compensate her for the emotional and psychological trauma she has faced as a result of his actions.
She said that at that time she had no thought of it being monetary compensation, however, the contractor then told her that it was “money” that she wanted.
According to her, the contractor was admonished by the Commander, who was also present at the meeting, for saying such.
Following the incident, in a video on Facebook, a family could be seen at the burial site condemning the acts as it mourned its loved one.
One man could be seen in the video grieving the loss of his brother as his older brother spoke about the fact that their brother was only buried a month ago.
“We are poor people and punishing and we had people pool money to help us bury my brother now, we can’t even say we coming to visit our brother because he is gone”, he lamented.
