Govt invites public to donate to relief efforts for Haiti

Minister of State and National Disaster Management Coordinator, Joseph Harmon, invited members of the Guyanese public to donate to the relief efforts for the hurricane-ravaged island of Haiti, even as he announced that the Civil Defence Commission (CDC) will be moving to open several bank accounts at Republic Bank Limited to receive donations.
Minister Harmon, who was at the time addressing participants of a recently concluded Mass Casualty Management Systems Workshop held by the CDC in collaboration with the World Health Organisation/Pan American Health Organisation (WHO/PAHO), said the nation needs help now more than ever.
The Minister noted that Haiti has suffered tragic losses and urged Guyanese to come together to show solidarity by contributing to the rebuilding efforts. At this time, with many of the locations still cut off and inaccessible to the Haitian authorities, monetary relief, he said, is most appropriate.
“It is part of our responsibility as a Caricom country, as a member of the United Nations system to respond in a way that is consistent with our own circumstances, to a country affected in this way as Haiti has been affected. I want to lay out the response that Government has actually put in place already and some additional responses we want to put in place. We have pledged US,000 initially, but we would like to have a much stronger response to this situation, so we are asking the Guyanese people to rally to the cause of the people of Haiti,” Minister Harmon said.
He noted that based on information from the Haitian Emergency Operations Centre and the Caribbean Disaster and Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA), monetary donations are preferred since other forms of aid could take weeks and months before it reaches the country. There are no guarantees too that the aid would be able to reach the areas which have been significantly affected in a timely manner, while the specific needs for many of those areas have not yet been identified.
While the bank accounts will be opened on Monday, October 24, at the Republic Bank Limited, there is a 24-hour hotline at the CDC, which persons can call to make donations. The telephone numbers are 226-1114, 226-1117 (extension 228) and 600-7500.
“I am asking that we cast our minds on the people of Haiti and to see how blessed and fortunate we are. Stay focused and connected,” Minister Harmon said.