Strathavon farmer to file lawsuit after crops destroyed by RDC

By DevinaSamaroo

Tears streamed down his lean cheekbones while a look of anguish transfixed the face of a 47-year-old farmer who struggled to comprehend why his only means of a livelihood was ruthlessly destroyed by the Regional Democratic Council of Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica).

Hamekarran Narine of Strathavon/Cane Grove, East Coast Demerara, got into the business of cash crop farming after he was thrown into the unemployment bracket following the closure of Reasat Rice Industries last year.

He claimed that his crops were planted on an abandoned dam without approval from the relevant authorities.

He is also holding out that other farmers who utilise that area to plant do not have the necessary approval.

It therefore came as a shock when he visited the land on Friday morning to see two hired labourers destroying his crops, only claiming that he has no legal right to use the property, while leaving the other farms unharmed.

Narine is claiming that this is a major act of discrimination and is currently in the process of filing a lawsuit against culpable individuals.

Emotional breakdown

During an interview with Guyana Times on Monday, Narine suffered an emotional breakdown as he reflected on the traumatic experience of witnessing his hard work being indiscriminately destroyed.

“When I went home, some man come and tell me go see what happened to your garden and so when I go, two guys were in the farm. I start to holler, ‘what y’all doing?! This is my living!’ and they say to shut my mouth before I lock you up. I said ‘Sir, if you want the dam, please let me reap up my crops, but they continue to chop. I hollered; I didn’t know what to do. The place was full with people and everyone was saying let the man reap out he crop first but they just chop and chop and destroyed everything,” the farmer lamented.

According to the farmer, the land has been used for over 40 years by residents to plant crops without any interruptions.

He is therefore baffled over the fact that only his area was destroyed.

“The Vice Chairman for Strathavon right now, his father used to plant on that dam to send him to school. Other children grow from that same dam. I am 47-years of age and that dam was always used for that. Since I was a lil’ boy, that dam wasn’t an access dam. It went in bush,” he explained.

Narine believes he was purposely targeted after he reprimanded an RDC official for littering nearby his farm.

“He throw two big bag of garbage in the trench and I told him ‘big man, you can’t do that’. Then he tell me that I am not supposed to be planting here, but I turn and tell him that all the time when it was bush, nobody said anything, but now it weed out, it full yuh eye,” he related.

The farmer believes the confrontation prompted the official to make arrangements for his farm to be destroyed.

2000 roots

In assessing the damage, the farmer said that some 2000 roots of bora were destroyed, amounting to thousands of dollars in losses.

“I work hard for this. I used to wake up early every morning. I don’t wake me wife to make any tea. I does go out on an empty stomach to go water them plants and then come home. I begged them to let me reap my crop and they just destroyed it,” he cried.

The 2000 roots of bora would have produced 70 bundles per picking, three times per week, for six weeks. With bora currently being sold at $500 per bundle, Narine lost approximately $630,000.

Through Attorney Anil Nandlall, Narine will be filing a lawsuit against the senior council member whom he believes is responsible for the discriminatory act.

Nandlall in an invited comment, explained that it is obvious that the dam appeared to be Government land; however, there were other persons who were cultivating cash crops on the same piece of land continuously over a prolonged period.

“Why was this gentleman’s farm alone identified and destroyed? The persons who have planted both in front of him and at the back of him, their farms have not been touched. So that smacks of some kind of vendetta, vindictiveness and witch-hunting,” he stated.

He also argued that the senior RDC official has no jurisdiction over a dam in Strathavon.

“This is a high official. He has to concern himself with the general administration of the region. What business he has to descend to the very low level of destroying people’s property, assuming that they are squatting on public lands,” he pointed out.

Nandlall posited that the Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC) is responsible for such matters.

Moreover, he contended that even if someone is trespassing or squatting on Government property, the law prescribes that an eviction notice should be sent to the defaulter before any further action is taken.