Linden will see tremendous development under PPP/C leadership – Min. Edghill

─ debunks Norton’s claims of inactivity in Region 10

During successive People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) governments, the township of Linden has seen tremendous development in the areas of healthcare, infrastructure, housing and education.

This was clarified by Minister of Public Works, Bishop Juan Edghill, as he debunked baseless accusations of inactivity in Linden made by Leader of the Opposition Aubrey Norton.

Highlighting several government projects, Minister Edghill noted that the administration has fast-tracked development in the town. This is primarily evident, he said, in the amount budgeted to be expended in Linden.

“This year alone, in Region 10, we are spending about $1.3 to $1.5 billion in road infrastructure. [This is] more than the APNU+AFC would have spent in the full five years that they spent in the office,” the minister pointed out.

Since it resumed office in 2020, the PPP/C has piloted several initiatives which are set to uplift the township of Linden.

In the historical passage of the Industrial Hemp Bill earlier this year, two regions were earmarked for the growth and production of the hemp plant, of which Region 10 is one.

A call centre was recently reopened to provide dozens of jobs to young people in and around Linden, resulting in positive development in the town.

The Board of Industrial Training (BIT) on September 22 announced the training of close to 180 persons from Linden, equipping them with necessary technical and vocational certification and skills.

In July 2021, some 400 house lots were distributed to the people of Linden, giving them equity in the form of land ownership.

Another 200 jobs were created through private investment after the commissioning of a $400 million concrete production facility and oxygen plant.

With these programmes already in place and hundreds of persons from Linden benefitting, Minister Edghill said he finds it hard to believe that the opposition leader would make such “reckless statements”.

“So whether it’s health, education, water, public infrastructure, agriculture, we can talk about the number of Lindeners that have gotten scholarships as a result of [the Guyana Online Academy of Learning] …and these people have the audacity to say we are not doing anything for anybody,” he posited.