Blueberry Hill residents stop ‘substandard’ road repairs
By Utamu Belle
Residents of Blueberry Hill, Wismar, Linden, have expressed dissatisfaction over repair work being carried
The road under repair at Blueberry Hill, Wismar, Linden that residents are dissatisfied with
out on one of the main thoroughfares in the area.
On Friday, several disgruntled residents protested by means of blocking the roadway against what they described as an unsatisfactory job by the contractor.
According to residents, upon enquiring a few days ago, they were informed that the project is being carried out through the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) at a cost of $14 million.
They noted that repairs are only being done to the mid-section of the roadway, leaving the corners in a deplorable state. The residents have also voiced concerns over the construction of drains along the said road and numerous others within the community.
Speaking with this newspaper, residents in the area vented frustration over the issue, complaining that the area’s infrastructure has been neglected for years by the regional authorities; and it is time they demand better treatment. They noted that by protesting, they were exercising their rights, indicating that they were “fed up” with the situation.
“They said to us they are patching our road…They are not doing the road shoulder to shoulder, and our contention is you have to do the parapets. Where the pedestrians gonna walk? They’re claiming as though the road is 17 feet in width, it seems as though two vehicles can’t pass at the same time. Then the vehicles gonna end up driving in the corner of the road. Which means it will break up the end of the road. They just do the road and left the edges,” an irate resident pointed out.
“They are saying to us, allow them to do the road and if anything (materials) left back, they’re going to spread it out to the edges. Then after we started making more noise they come to an agreement saying that they’re going to do like three feet, off of the part of the road with the asphalt and the two ends, that is where they gonna put the stones and they would throw some stuff on it. But we would not get it shoulder to shoulder,” Lisa James, a resident stated.
The road, which the residents are protesting against, is situated adjacent the Upper Demerara Hospital (UDH). They have also highlighted several other deplorable roads in the community.
Residents who spoke to this newspaper said the REO of Region 10 (Upper Demerara/Berbice) Gavin Clarke paid a visit to the site during the protest action and enquired what they would like to see happen regarding the situation.
“He’s saying to us this $14 million is for the road. We’re saying that we want the shoulders, so he’s saying that he got to negotiate with the contractor now…so the road got to cut short. They can’t do the length of the road and give us shoulders. If the shoulders gonna come in now, is more money. So the road wouldn’t complete and we’re not satisfied with that”, a Blueberry Hill resident pointed out.
Another resident stated that should the road remain in that state, the corners would eventually “wash away” when it rains. He pointed out that the area is also subjected to massive erosion during the inclement weather.
The residents said they decided to stop the work upon realising that it was being done in a substandard way. They also complained of not being consulted on what works are being executed in the community.
“They’re not coming and tell us anything. Just coming in the area and doing a set of stupidness and we must accept whatever they do. We can’t accept this,” another resident declared.
They also claimed that it is difficult reaching with Regional officials to voice their concerns, pointing out that Regional Chairman Renis Morian lives in the area but did not meet with them over the issue because he was ‘unavailable’.
