The distribution of the $100,000 cash grant to residents of Mahdia, Princeville and Campbelltown, Region Eight officially began yesterday, following a launch by Minister of Amerindian Affairs, Pauline Sukhai.
The initiative, which aims to inject approximately $200 million into the region’s economy, has been met with a mix of enthusiasm and frustration as local residents navigate the distribution process. Representatives from the Bank of Guyana were on the ground facilitating cheque cashing with plans for a second distribution date to accommodate those who miss out on the initial round.
While the launch was attended by many hopeful recipients, the process quickly became chaotic. One resident, expressed frustration, stating, “There was bare confusion at the beginning. They decided to separate Campbelltown and Mahdia after everybody already end up at the benab in Campbelltown, and now Mahdia has to go to the RDC boardroom.”
Attempts to obtain answers from the $100,000 distribution hotline failed.
Initially according to residents, the plan was to distribute the grants to the elderly first, but a change in protocol left many residents confused. A resident explained, “They had the launching with the long speech, and at first, they said it was to be done for the elderly first, and then they said alphabetical order. Now they’re saying Campbelltown residents go first, then Mahdia by 5 p.m. Tempers were flaring up because people have been here since 11 a.m.”
Despite the early confusion, some residents remained patient, acknowledging that the situation had improved as the process began to stabilize. “I’m in this line to collect the grant. Now we have law and order.
This morning was bare confusion when they had everybody here one time, but it’s getting better,” said one resident from Campbelltown.
A resident speaking with SN said “Imagine I wait whole day only to hear they don’t have my cheque I gotta check back tomorrow, they said they here for two days, today and tomorrow, I sit down there whole day, they said the cheque is not here, they are coming up with cheques already written, and somebody from Bank of Guyana is there to change the cheques cause you know we don’t have no bank nothing here anyway I called the hotline and they said check back tomorrow. And when you go you have to go back and take out, they have to take your picture again and your ID photo again just like when you have to register, the man from the Finance Department announced that this morning.”
“They announced they are doing pregnant people first and people with baby, people in Mahdia were there then, they then send Mahdia to the boardroom by the RDC there, Campbelltown and Princeville left by the benab, when I left there at 5:15pm they still haven’t dealt with Princeville, people there since before 10, they didn’t even give no juice nothing…well they announced before they started the distribution that everybody will not get but how you gunna know if you don’t stay?, they said they had 200 cheques for Campbelltown, over 200 for Mahdia, they like they do it wrong, you have the people name with the cheques, they should have just called out people name for the cheques, now I come home to eat and is now I get a wind pain. Meh husband get through, but my daughter still waiting, they had nuff cheques for Princeville.”
Another Mahdia resident said “I was right behind the pensioners this morning, they had about four rows of pensioners, I took about a 20 minutes walk from the benab to the boardroom and when we get there now was bare confusion, I had to join back the line from the back, and it was like they chased us from the benab”.
Another resident said, “The crowd pushing and so, I think was poor planning, when I reach Boardroom, they said they have four stages, I couldn’t really hear but one was from L-Z was stage 4, but you couldn’t hear your name, because the crowd was making a lot of noise, they should have used the school and everything would have gone smoothly, I was told to come back tomorrow early.”
As evening set in, some residents were left with no choice but to return home empty-handed, unsure if they would be able to collect their grant the following day. “This is just unacceptable” said one woman.
Despite the frustration, some residents remain hopeful that the situation will improve today.
