in the wake of the ongoing challenge facing the Linden Mayor and Town Council (LM&TC) with regard to effective garbage collection, officials of the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) of Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) are considering the possibility of building a partnership with the municipality as a means of rendering assistance.
Region 10 Chairman Renis Morian
Chairman of the Region’s Local Government Committee, Sandra Adams said the issue of garbage collection by the LM&TC was discussed at length during a recent Committee meeting where the recommendation of a possible partnership was highlighted.
“The Local Government Committee would have discussed at length the issue of garbage in and out of our communities, realising the situation that the Council is in – the inability to be able to take care of garbage the way it should be…,” Adams noted.
She added that the Committee was recommending that the two Councils come together to commence a garbage disposal campaign. At the time of the Committee meeting, Adams said that Linden Mayor Carwyn Holland was attending an exercise in New Jersey but she corresponded with him to seek help in securing a million garbage bags to offset a garbage awareness campaign, with the possibility of engaging the participation of drivers in the community. The Committee has planned several initiatives, including having CDs promoting keeping the town clean being played as drivers were about to leave for their destinations.
“Our recommendation is that the RDC and M&TC partner in bringing off such a campaign exercise. We want to try something that can help us do something. We would have recommended that they build permanent steel structures that will house skip bins at the market and around the bend of Coop Crescent,” Adams continued.
Meanwhile, Regional Chairman Renis Morian said the municipality had been advised, through Mayor Holland, to prepare a proposal for the securing of two garbage trucks along with two security vehicles during a trip to China some time ago. He noted, however, that it appeared as though the opportunity has not been utilised.
“While I am very disappointed in terms of the whole situation of garbage; when myself and the Mayor went to China, we did raise the issue of garbage collection in Region 10, and what the company that we were talking with could have done. I spoke on behalf of the Council about garbage collection and the Council was advised through the Mayor to have a proposal done…and the Council had the responsibility of doing that proposal,” Morian stated.
The Regional Chairman said he was given all assurance that the proposal would have been done.
“Now, to come back and hear from Local Government (Committee) that we got a garbage problem when we got a promise for two garbage trucks…So here we had an opportunity, but the opportunity was not utilised,” the Regional Chairman noted.
He added that he would like the Local Government Committee to reach out to the Mayor concerning the proposal, noting that he welcomed the idea of the two Councils working together to curb the garbage situation in the community.
