President commissions $7M bleacher at Burnham Park

May 20, 2014 News

By Leon Suseran
After being dormant and neglected for a number of years, Burnham Park, New Amsterdam, which was once one of the premiere sporting venues in Guyana, saw a grand re-commissioning ceremony on Sunday by President Donald Ramotar.
Construction of a $7M bleacher with eight platforms started in 2013. Toilet facilities with a reservoir were also built. Excavation of the drains, some land filling and fencing were also done.

Pres. Ramotar is assisted by a student of the Berbice High School in cutting the ribbon to the new bleacher.

Presidential Advisor on Empowerment, Mr. Odinga Lumumba, urged that the facility be maintained at all times, “but the maintenance of this facility should not be in the hands of the Mayor or the Government. These things are built for young people and you have to make sure you protect it and ensure they are not destroyed.”
The official added that between $90M and $100M has been earmarked for sports development in Guyana, this year.
He warned of the Opposition budget cuts. “So if you don’t see these facilities this year, it’s not the PPP/C—it’s cut by APNU and we need you to put pressure on them to bring this money back to Parliament.”
Region Six Chairman, David Armogan, urged the gathering to care the facilities available in the ground. “This is just one of a number of projects taking place in our region, in terms of sports development.”
Armogan dispelled notions of members of the public that “when we (the government) select grounds to do, we select [from] People’s Progressive Party (PPP) areas—but today’s event is a total lie to that claim—this is Burnham’s Park we are on today, and so I wish to nail that lie, because if that were true, we wouldn’t have been here today commissioning a project in a place called Burnham’s Park.”
He added that they have recognized that the youths of New Amsterdam deserve to have the park in a certain way “and that is why we have invested money, and not only here but we are investing money in the ground at Bermine, and we will upgrade the other volleyball court in the other areas in New Amsterdam, because we believe the youths in New Amsterdam deserve the same kind of facilities that the youths all across Guyana deserve.”
More developmental works in sports will come on stream in the coming months as “more monies are pumped into the sports field.” Sports brings our people together and brings out the best in people, he added.
In another few days, he noted, it will be advertised in the newspapers, for persons, sports clubs and groups to apply for Government’s $1M grant, “and so, all the sports people within the region who are interested can apply.” Criteria set out for such applications demand that the groups have Committees of Management and the clubs are fully functioning. That project will unfold in another few weeks.
President Ramotar told the gathering that over the years the government has been building and rebuilding physical infrastructure, “so necessary and so indispensable for further social and economic development.”

President Ramotar shares an interactive and fun moment with one of the youngsters following the ribbon- cutting.

While the physical infrastructure is important, President Ramotar said that the government also sees the importance of investing in people, “because in the final analysis, the most important aspect is in fact, people, and we want to enhance the capacity of people.”
“We want to invest in sports, because we believe that investing in sports has a lot of indirect and direct benefits for the society—it teaches our young people…sports can make a contribution—we need to have other methods and we believe sports can make a greater contribution” in fighting crime.
Sports, he noted, has rules, “and if you violate them (the rules), you will be punished.”
Sports, too, benefits young people in the area of health and fighting against different kinds of diseases, “and it encourages a healthy way of life to battle against some drug abuses, alcohol abuse.”
The Burnham Park Management Committee has erected posts around the ground which will soon have lamps on them to illuminate the area. President Ramotar praised this initiative.
The park which was named after the late founder leader Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham, sits on approximately 10 acres of land on the outskirt of the New Amsterdam.
The famous ground, which is one of the few that holds a 400M athletic track comfortably, was where a number of famous Berbice and Guyana national players honed their skills, among them the Alphonsos, the Humphreys, the Fords, the Samuels, the Innisses and many others.
Athletics, cycling, motorcycle, car and a number of other sporting and cultural activities were also held at the venue. Famous groups like Third World also performed at the venue.