Linden Town Week 2018 kicks off
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[fruitful_sep]DPI, GUYANA, Sunday, 22 April 2018
“Your diverse list of activities, the variety of exhibits and a rich cultural programme are clear indications that the rich cultural heritage and diverse business activities and opportunities of this great town will be on full display over the ensuing days.” This was the view expressed by Minister of State Joseph Harmon as he officially opened the long-awaited Linden Town Week 2018 this afternoon at the Linden/Georgetown bus park.
The ceremony hosted by the Linden Mayor and Town Council and the Linden Town Week Secretariat was attended by a number of regional and local representatives and residents of the mining town. Also present were representatives from Georgetown and the New Amsterdam Mayor and Town Council.
Referencing the theme of the town week – “Celebrating our culture, talents, and creativity in a clean, green 2018,”Minister Harmon held that “The town week theme also indicates that you are fully appreciative and in sync with division and developmental trust of our government to establish a green economy and Guyana as a green state.”
The Minister further referred to a charge made by the President David Granger at the unveiling of the town’s Centennial Bauxite arch, for citizens to be able to wean themselves from excessive dependency on a single industry and for Linden to push its limits and not be satisfied with being a mining town but become a manufacturing town.
“I am happy to see that the citizens of Linden are aggressively pursuing this mandate given by his Excellency and venturing into various forms of manufacturing. I am told that some of the exhibitors are those entrepreneurs that are utilizing the financial facilities made available through the Linden Enterprise Network (LEN),” Minister Harmon noted.
The State Minister also encouraged Linden’s business community to put more teamwork into the event and take advantage of the process and opportunities that will come with the highly expected influx of visitors and business enterprises that will result from the completion of the Guyana-Brazil highway.
He also pitched that it was only with greater collaboration between the council, regional administration and stakeholders that the town will experience rapid development. In this, the minister called for greater dialogue with all citizens.
In closing the minister also took the time to highlight that more is to come for the town, and mentioned some initiatives Linden will benefit from, such as the International Solar Alliance Agreement which was signed by President Granger at a recent trip to India. He signalled that the solar footprint of Linden is a great asset and the town has great solar potential with the mined-out areas. The Coomacka Mines drainage and slush run-off issues in the rainy season are also to be addressed, along with the land issues that plague the residents; in relation to land titles and the Guyana Land and Survey’s Commission are to be resolved to the benefit of the residents.
Mayor of Linden, Waneka Arindell gave a moving speech which highlighted the changes that Linden has endured including the many struggles. Arrindell noted that Lindeners must continue to strive to bring positive change to the 48-year old town’s development
Linden Town week is officially 10 days of celebration that kicked off yesterday with a Speak up, Speak Out” march to raise awareness and end violence against women. The week of activities will also feature a variety of sports events, essay writing and spelling bee competitions, a youth village, tours to Rockstone and Coomacka, among others.
By: Stephon Gabriel