Moleson Creek residents say they have been forgotten

Aug 27, 2012 News

By Samuel Whyte

Moleson Creek residents believe that they have been abandoned by those who were put in positions to help alleviate the hardships they have been forced to endure over the past decade.
The community which lies at the eastern most part of Guyana near the border with Suriname can be considered one of the country’s depressed areas, a far cry from the years of the thriving contraband business.
Residents claim that despite their desperate pleas for assistance they are not getting any help whatsoever.
Their many pleas to the many government officials, including former President Bharat Jadgeo and current leader, President Ramotar, many government ministers and regional officials, have gone unanswered.
Their main concern is the road, or what is left of it.

Two members of the media sit atop a tractor during their tour of Moleson Creek.

Moleson Creek situated some 66 miles from New Amsterdam on the upper reaches of the Corentyne Coast, is mostly an agricultural area.
Recently, the residents took members of the media to the area to have a firsthand look at the conditions under which they have to exist.
The residents who are all farmers say that the road is one of the worst, if not the worst in Guyana. “Imagine they are calling this a road. It is impossible to use this thing”. One irate resident stated.
“The only way you can use the place is by tractor or walk and sometimes walking is impossible. That’s the only way you can move about in here.”
And even with a tractor you are not out of your troubles because, after a certain point, the small tractors become useless.
The residents farm mostly Plantains, Bananas, Cassava and Sweet potatoes.
They fear that if the situation continues, they will not be able to bring their products to the market, thereby incurring significant losses.
Balwant Hemraj said that just a few weeks ago he lost over 6000 pounds of plantains which cost over $360,000, because he could not bring it out of the fields, due to the state of the road.
At times they have to use three tractors just to pull one. They will load the one with produce and use the others to tug it through the mud.
They are also blaming the cane farmers who farm in the area for the state of the road.
An elderly resident who said that she has been living in the area for more than 50 years stated that the place has never been in such a state in past years and it is getting worse every day.
Her children cannot get out of the area to go to work and her grandchildren cannot event go to school. The sickly woman who stated that she did farming for most of her life said that she cannot even go for her pension. She stated she has to leave it or beg somebody passing with a tractor to collect it.
“We have to use the trench and pond water for everything or depend on the rain. The water gives us sick,” she said.
Abid Karim Rahim, another farmer stated “this is an agricultural area and we contribute millions of dollars in agricultural products to the GDP of this country and this is how we are treated.”
He added “We asked GWI to assist us by boring a stand pipe at the head of the road and they refused. We are not fighting for electricity, food and money, all we want is for them to look after the road.”
“They passed this area and went all over, till to Orealla and distribute solar panels and black tanks, and they can’t fix our road. Are we not living in Guyana? Are we not Guyanese?” he asked.
A two mile drive down the road up to the school would take up to two hours.
The residents said “The only time you see government people in here is when they want we to vote. ‘Vote for we and we will help you’ and when that is done they disappear.”
The residents claim that many persons were forced to relocate as a result of the increasingly deplorable conditions.
“If someone gets sick in the area, it is a horrendous task to get help. It is almost impossible to get in and out. The only means of transportation is by tractor. And after some parts, the small tractors cannot traverse. Only the big John Dere tractors can traverse the road. And even those get a difficult time to maneuver.”
The Moleson Creek residents are begging the government to look into their plight. “We are not burning buildings, bridges and Cane fields. We are not beating people. All we want is for them to fix the road and the bridges.”