Government talks development for Regions Two, Three
His Excellency Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali has assured residents of Regions Two and Three that they can expect to see even more developments as the Government’s work programme rolls out.
The President made these statements during an outreach to Leguan and Wakenaam, Essequibo Islands-West Demerara (Region Three) and Suddie, Essequibo Coast, Pomeroon-Supenaam (Region Two) on Sunday.
He was accompanied by Minister of Public Works, Hon. Bishop Juan Edghill and Minister of Local Government and Regional Development, Hon. Nigel Dharamlall.
During the outreaches, the Head of State said there are many benefits in store for the people.
“Whether you are nurses, teachers, public servant, rice farmer or labour, you are all equal in the eyes of your government and will be treated equally,” President Ali said. “In only three months, we have liberalised the telecommunication sector; we have broken the monopoly. We have removed VAT on electricity and water, farmers essentials and chemicals, equipment and machinery. We are putting back people to work and have brought back life to mining and forestry,” he added.
President Ali also urged residents to observe the COVID-19 measures, explaining that the disease is real and deadly. He also pledged that the Government will continue to take steps to combat the disease. To this end, he said, “On Sunday we will have 10 more ICU beds available. Yesterday we got 29 additional ventilators and in three weeks’ time we will have a further 20 ICU beds available.”
President Ali then presented a quantity of sport gear to youth groups and cricket teams on the islands.
Meanwhile, Minister Edghill told residents of Leguan that over the next three months $106 million will be invested in capital works on the island.
At Wakenaam, he revealed that $200 million would be spent on works by December 31. The Minister told residents at Suddie that special attention will be paid to works that had long been overdue.
“We are continuing to ensure that our river and sea defences are in good shape. One of the things that we are reintroducing is that we will have rangers again patrolling the sea defences so we don’t have to wake up and see that there is a breach, the ranger will alert us way ahead of time,” Minister Edghill said.
Meanwhile, Minister Dharamlall said $22 million was handed over to the Neighbourhood Democratic Council for workers’ salaries. Another $5 million will be disbursed for subventions, inclusive of crusher run to help maintain the throughfares. Approximately 50 solar streets lights will be presented to Leguan.
At Wakenaam, he said over the next three months some $41 million would be used to improve the livelihood of the citizens. He noted too that 84 Community Development Councils (CDC) have been established to date.
On the Essequibo Coast, the Local Government Minister assured residents of interventions and investments for the Region, both in the Health and Education sectors. Some $4 billion has been allocated for the region this year.