It has been more than a week since the Linden to Lethem road became flooded, making it almost impossible for vehicles to pass and the Public Infrastructure Ministry is still to intervene in the situation to assist commuters.
Even as business owners, residents and other users of the road continue to fume over its deplorable state, the Public Infrastructure Ministry, which has responsibility for the maintenance of the road, is yet to make a pronouncement on it and its engineer is yet to pay a visit to the area.
Efforts to contact the Public Infrastructure Minister, David Patterson, for an update on Tuesday proved futile, however, the Ministry’s Public Relations Officer, Krest Cummings, told Guyana Times that the Ministry is aware of the situation and its Hinterland Engineer is looking into the situation and seeking ways to provide a quick solution to the problem.
Residents of Mahdia, Region Eight (Potaro-Siparuni), who usually suffer the harsh effects associated with the condition of the road, have refuted the PRO’s claim, saying that the engineer has not visited the area and the Council has not received any updates on the way forward.
Business operators depend on this route to get their goods into Mahdia. A businessman, Neil Jailall, who reached out to this publication on Tuesday reiterated calls for Government intervention. He said when the road is in this state, it is difficult to get supplies into the town. In addition to this, he said the cost is sometimes more than doubled, putting a strain on business operators who have to increase their prices to offset these high transportation costs. This, he said, creates more hardships on residents.
Minibuses transporting passengers to Mahdia were forced to stop and occupants were made to brave the flood and assist the driver in getting through the waters.
During a recent interview with this publication, Chairman of Region Eight (Potaro-Siparuni) Bonaventure Fredericks highlighted the need for competent road contractors to execute these much-needed road works. He pointed out that oftentimes, the road work contracts are being awarded to inexperienced contractors who may not possess the necessary knowledge for building all-weather roads.
Residents of Mahdia are pleading with the authorities to offer a long-term solution to this issue.
The residents accused the Government of neglect as they have made countless calls for intervention but have not received a response from the subject Ministry.
The road users also alleged that a major contributing factor to this issue is the awarding of contracts to inexperienced contractors.
The deplorable condition of a section of the Linden to Lethem road
