Construction work on the new Passport Office at Linden, Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) has been completed. The project, which commenced in January, was recently completed and is expected to be handed over shortly.
The Linden Passport Office
Construction of the building, measuring 2000 square feet, was executed by R. Bassoon and Sons Contracting Company to the tune of $30,604,472. According to a worker on the ground, a new guard hut is expected to be soon erected inside the compound. With this new development, residents of Linden and other parts of Region 10 are expected to enjoy the comfort of having a passport office which will cater for new applications within their community, easing the burden of having to travel to Georgetown to access the service.
Last December, Minister of Citizenship, Winston Felix, travelled to the community for a sod-turning exercise at the site for the construction of the new passport office, situated in the vicinity of the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) building at Retrieve, Mackenzie.
While Linden has been benefiting from passport renewal services conducted out of the National Insurance Scheme (NIS) building at Mackenzie since August 2016, it will be the first time the community would house such a building to cater for new applicants. Applicants who apply at the Georgetown office also benefit from uplifting same at this office. However, this move will see new applicants now having access to the service from within the community.
The office is expected to process other documents, such as birth and death certificates. Minister Winston Felix had noted that the move is part of Government’s plan to decentralise such services. He indicated that, in the past, there were complaints from citizens both local and across the Diaspora regarding the inconvenience associated with long waits and travelling to the main office in Georgetown, while the number of applications continued to increase.
Meanwhile, Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam) Chairman Devanand Ramdatt has reiterated calls for an immigration office to be set up in the Region.
“Recently, I visited the passport office in Georgetown and was very impressed by the level of professionalism and timely response offered by the staff as they served the public… The Regional Democratic Council of Region Two reiterates its call for the processing of machine readable passports in Region Two,” he posited.
According to Ramdatt, the burdens placed on Essequibians – travel expenses and time loss, among other challenges – cannot be overemphasised. He went on to point out that Region Two and its neighbouring regions contribute significantly to Guyana’s economy, and as such, should also be outfitted with these critical services.
“Our Minister of Citizenship had committed, during a flag-raising ceremony in February 2017, to address this concern … Fifty-two years after Independence, it is only fair that there is equality in the services offered, and we enjoy similar benefits given to other regions,” the Regional Chairman asserted.
This call by Ramdatt comes on the heels of Government’s announcement to decentralise key public services across all the regions of the country.
