Significant upgrades for Le Repentir Cemetery
The National Assembly on Monday passed with amendments a motion that supports the government’s efforts to upgrade the Le Repentir cemetery to elevate it to the status of a national memorial.
The original motion was brought by an Opposition Member of Parliament. It proposed that the National Assembly call on the government to upgrade the historic facility.
However, Minister of Public Works Bishop Juan Edghill said the government has already initiated a plan to upgrade cemeteries across the country including the Le Repentir Cemetery in 2025.
The cemetery was established in 1861 and covered approximately 106.508 acres. It has suffered degradation over the years.
During the 101st sitting of the National Assembly, the public works minister told the house that Guyana’s laws dictate that the Georgetown Mayor and City Council is responsible for the cemetery’s maintenance.
“As a matter of fact, all the family members who have to engage funeral homes or parlours the monies they pay are paid to city hall for the spot. So where is the money that is being paid for burials going?” he questioned.
Another clause in the opposition MP’s motion advocates that the Georgetown City Council is unable to garner adequate funds to provide services such as security and maintenance, among others.
Minister Edghill reminded the house that the MP is a senior member of a political party that owes the Mayor and City Council $6.4 billion in rates and taxes.
“If the company that is the holding facility for Congress Place just pays their rates and taxes, the issue of the enhancement of the Le Repentir Cemetery by the competent authority which is the Mayor and City Council could be addressed in a week’s time,” he stated.
Georgetown development plan
The public works minister further outlined detail on the various elements of the cemetery’s refurbishment, which falls under the government’s urban rehabilitation programme.
He explained that small contractors from surrounding areas will soon be employed to construct concrete roads in the cemetery as part of its rehabilitation. This includes six main access roads, 13 cross streets and four footpaths.
Overgrown vegetation is a key challenge at the cemetery, but the public works minister said the government is exploring a solution.
A proposed protocol would allow families to concrete not only the tomb itself but also the surrounding ground, paving the space between tombs to prevent vegetation growth.
“That way the maintenance of the cemetery would require minimum intervention. That is not just something for Le Repentir, it is for all cemeteries countrywide. The work has started and we will continue to execute it,” the minister stated.
According to him, the failures and inaction of the M&CC have prompted the intervention of central government and thus far, almost $20 billion has been expended for the enhancement of the capital city.
Minister of Local Government and Regional Development Sonia Parag refuted claims by the Opposition MPs that the PPP/C owed over $13 billion in rates and taxes.
“I have spoken to the City Council and can definitively say that this government does not owe the City Council any money,” the minister stated.
The motion was also supported by Minister of Home Affairs, Robeson Benn and Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport, Charles Ramson Jr.