Several farmers in Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice) staged a protest outside the Ministry of the Presidency on Tuesday morning as they continued to be barred from entering farm lands located in Naarstigheid, West Coast Berbice (WCB).
During the picketing exercise, the farmers, mostly from Hopetown and Bath Settlement, WCB, called on President David Granger to reverse a decision taken by the Regional Executive Officer (REO) Ovid Morrison, to remove them from the lands, which they have been farming on for the past 27 years.
Two weeks ago, Morrison erected a ‘No trespassing’ sign leading to the lands, telling the farmers at a recent meeting that he would reclaim the lands to do a mixed farming project and as such, they would have to remove by March 2017.
However, member of the Hopetown/Naarstigheid Farmers’ Group, Krishna Suelall, revealed to Guyana Times that some 200 farmers engage in cash crop farming, aqua-culture and livestock rearing on the lands.
He explained that the lands belonged to the Mahaica, Mahaicony, Abary (MMA) project, which has been supporting the farmers over the years. Suelall added that the land was leased to the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) but has been occupied by the farmers ever since. He continued that the Council never used the lands, hence the MMA repossessed the lands and allowed the farmers to continue their work.
“Over the years, (the MMA) stopped us and this new REO, Mr Ovid Morrison, put up a sign last week, preventing us from going on the farm. Is a lot of cash crops, we suffering, millions of dollars in losses right now because a lot of plants and trees ready to go down and we can’t put it down,” the farmer stated.
Suelall said that they are attempting to get the attention of the President so that he can intervene on their behalf.
“Right now we are here, appealing to the President. Mr Granger was at Fort Wellington a few months ago and encouraged us to go into farming and that he will support us… we expand our cultivations and now this REO is trying to stop us. He wants to stop us so he can do his own farming project,” the distressed man noted.
Meanwhile, Chairman of the Hopetown/Naarstigheid Farmers’ group, Ivan Harry, related to Guyana Times that during the protest action that the farmers have been providing employment to a lot of young people in the region and this move by the REO will render many of them jobless.
“We have been providing employment to people; we spent a lot of money, a lot of time (on those lands) and some people there, that’s all they do for a living. If you throw them out of the lands, what are they going to do, we employ a lot of young people so what will happen to them now,” Harry questioned.
Moreover, the farmers had pointed out that the Regional Chairman indicated to them that this matter was never discussed at the level of the RDC and the REO was not authorised to evict the farmers from the lands.
Last week, Regional Chairman Vickchand Ramphal told this newspaper that the decision to displace the farmers from the lands was not taken by the regional administration.
While the farmers were told by Vice Chairman Rian Pieters on Thursday last to continue their daily farming activities, the men complained that the REO already has an excavator in the area clearing parts of the land.
The farmers are expected to lobby the MMA at a meeting scheduled for this Friday.
Farmers from the Hopetown/Naarstigheid group picketing the Ministry of the Presidency on Tuesday
