Rehab of Mon Repos schools to start shortly - Harmon

Rehabilitation of the Mon Repos Nursery and Primary schools is to begin shortly, according to Minister of State, Joseph Harmon.

Harmon on Friday met with residents of Mon Repos and other surrounding com-munities on the East Coast of Demerara and assured them that the Government will not make any distinctions based on political affiliation or other factors when it comes to the provision of public services and amenities.

A release from the Ministry of the Presidency said that Harmon, who was accompanied by ViceChairman of the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) of Region Four, Earle Lambert, said that he will do everything possible to address problems being experienced by residents, ranging from deplorable roads, lack of representation from the Neighbourhood Democratic Councils (NDCs) to garbage collection as a matter of urgency.

“We do not see persons by the party they represent or their ethnic background… Government is for all of the people of this country. We have to ensure that all of communities are developed in an equitable way. We cannot have one area developed and another neglected because of political voting patterns. We cannot have one area developed and another left back because of ethnic polarisation. We require in this country, a oneness of purpose and social cohesion and that is the only way we can take this country forward,” the Minister stated.

He announced that rehabilitation works on the Mon Repos Nursery and Primary Schools will start soon as expenditure has been approved through the Ministry of Education.

Addressing the functioning of the NDCs and the lack of action by the elected Councillors, raised by Sydney Duncan of the Beterverwagting community, Harmon told the residents that they must demand accountability and representation.

“If these people do not represent you, vote them out. It doesn’t matter where they come from. If they cannot represent you in your community, they serve absolutely no purpose. According to the Laws, you can also move a No Confidence Motion to have persons replaced in between elections. You elected them and the purpose of you electing them is for them to serve you. We fought for Local Government to give you the power to change what is happening in your communities and I ask you to exercise that right. Whether they are from the party I come from or not, if they are not representing you, there is no need for them there,” Harmon told the residents.

He undertook to engage the Minister of Communities, Ronald Bulkan on ways to help improve the way NDCs function, since he noted that there is sometimes a disconnect between the Local Government organ and the residents.

The release said that many of the residents raised concerns about the deplorable state of their roads, drains and lack of street lighting. Harmon committed to having a team from the Minister of Public Infrastructure visit the community to determine the extent of works, which must be done.

The release said that Parmanand Persaud, a resident of Mon Repos, expressed gratitude to the Minister for visiting with and listening to the residents. “Even though it is a national holiday, you took the time to come and meet with us and listen to our concerns and so we really want to say that we appreciate this very much. We thank you,” he said.

Harmon assured the residents that this is not a one-off meeting but going forward, a more conscious effort will be made to engage the citizens of the community.