No health services, closed police station among front burner issues in Mara

Feb 16, 2011 News

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Along the Eastern bank of the Berbice River runs a plethora of small villages, many of which are farming communities that were a hive of activity under other political administrations. These communities today are sparsely populated, with residents living great distances from each other, even though you would find clumps of houses in a stretch.
Many home owners have abandoned their homes and have either migrated overseas or to other areas in Berbice where town centres can be accessed easier.
Not really explored much by the public, these East Berbice settlements such as Plegt Anker, Ma Retraite, New Ma Retraite, Mara, Julianenburg, Schepmoed, Germania and Highbury each have a unique history in their own right. The final village on this East Bank corridor is Germania, where many say the road comes to an end and the Berbice River takes centre view.
Most of the villages’ names have French and Dutch roots.
However, when one looks at the situation, these communities are populated with people who make a living mostly by small-scale farming, and as such, they lack certain necessities and have normal concerns just as people living in more developed housing centres.
Kaieteur News visited Mara/Schepmoed last week and it was shocking to say the least that these areas are as vulnerable as can be to criminal activities. The Mara Police Station was closed for some reason. The office, which was commissioned not so long ago, had locks on the door and the windows were closed. The residents said that the station is hardly ever in operation and that although crime in the area is relatively low, they do wonder what will happen in a case where they might need the services of law enforcement officials.
Health services in Mara and the other far-flung villages are virtually absent. And according to a teacher of the Schepmoed Primary School, Ms Paula Chisholm, save for a medical officer that visits the area on the third Tuesday of every month, there is no health service in Mara/ Schepmoed. The old health centre was abandoned and was being overtaken with bushes.
Chisholm stated that the area is in dire need of a midwife and someone who can administer first aid help in cases of medical emergencies.
“We have lots of pregnant mothers and old people,”she said. “Once a month is not enough. It’s not easy. It’s not safe.”
The Schepmoed Primary and Nursery School, built in the 1950s, has 3 teachers and 37 students. The school was engaged in heavy farming in the past years. The teachers stated that they are getting a lot of help from the Regional Education officials, especially Mrs Shafiran Bhajan, who visits the school frequently. What they are concerned about is the roofing of the school which is covered mostly with asbestos material. They say it is unsafe for the children and that the students cannot drink the water that is captured on the roof by rain. The school is powered by solar energy, but is “powerless” whenever the weather is cloudy.
The teachers also said that the school yard is always inundated with water and that they requested the assistance of the Regional Chairman, asking him to send a hymac, which he promised to do. However, the machine passed them and went to Germania instead. They said the Chairman visits the community once per month.
The school is slated to undergo repairs this year by the Regional administration.
The pump station in Mara/Schepmoed is also operated by solar power. The residents get water Monday to Friday for two hours per day, except whenever it is cloudy or rainy.
There is also a call for better roads. The 25-mile stretch of roadway to Mara/Schepmoed is passable for the most part. Much of it is in need of repairs because of the potholes while other portions have been worn out due to the passage of time and heavy vehicles in the area. This is affecting transportation access in and out of the area, according to residents.
They mentioned that even though it is a small-scale farming area, they are outsmarted by truck owners that come into the area with produce.  “The trucks come in and they (owners) give you little for nothing,” they said.
In the past, one could not traverse in and out of Mara/Schepmoed as one had liked. A ride on a tractor or a heavy duty vehicle was the going thing. Today, even though cars hardly go into the area, a few buses do provide transport. Four wheel drives and pick-up trucks also frequent the area for various reasons and many persons, especially in New Amsterdam, might use this as an opportunity to send in or send out produce or materials to and from the area.
Many residents in this area have huge backyards with a variety of fruit trees, including oranges. Several farms exist in Mara, as well as a popular cattle ranch which is located further up, near to Germania.
Mara’s oldest resident is 102-year-old Catherine de Haan. She resides by herself and enjoys great health.
Two phone booths are located in the area, one at Mara and the other some
distance away. Phone cards are required for their operation. While the only cell phone tower is located just after Edinburgh, some 20 kilometres or so away. One must climb a tree or house roof to access a reasonable cell phone signal.
While much of Guyana’s population sits on the heavily-populated coastland, a fraction of them, like the residents of Mara, do inhabit little corners of the inland areas. Whether it is their choice or preference, many of those residents were born in these areas and cannot, under any circumstances, call anywhere else ‘home’.
A few have left, their empty, vegetation-filled homes are the lone symbols of their occupancy that once was. Nevertheless, the residents of Mara and the other villages up the East Bank of the Berbice River are no lesser human beings than others in fancy looking districts and areas.
That being said, the authorities can and should start by giving them the necessary health facilities and a proper roadway, for better and faster access to the outside. They deserve that much.
(Leon Suseran)

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