To ignore infrastructural projects that benefit the poor is contemptuous – Harmon

Jan 23, 2015 News

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Following the announcement of May 11 as the date for Regional and General Elections, A Partnership for National Unity (APNU)’s, General Secretary Joseph Harmon, took an unconventional approach to host a press conference Wednesday. The conference was centred on Government’s disregard for infrastructural projects that would make a difference in the lives of poor Guyanese.

Most of APNU’s press briefings are held at the Office of the Leader of the Opposition, on Hadfield Street. But to ensure that he hammered home his point on Government’s contempt for the poor and working class, Harmon invited members of the media to a conference at a section of the deteriorating Georgetown Ferry Stelling.
In choosing to hold the press conference there, the politician said that the viewers of television programmes, readers of newspapers and the social media, will get a first-hand look at what APNU has been saying since it went into the National Assembly in 2012.
Harmon’s focus was on the state of facilities used by commuters to access the speedboat landings, particularly the Georgetown end of the Vreed-en-Hoop to Georgetown, Demerara Harbour route.
He said that Government’s spending on public infrastructure was wrongly prioritized for it always held the view that public infrastructure must serve human development.
Harmon told the media, as well as several onlookers, that the government was spending taxpayers’ monies on projects which did not have a direct or short term benefit for the thousands of poor hardworking Guyanese people.
The Parliamentarian said that in APNU’s budget presentations, the PPP administration was advised to spend money on the facilities which the poor, working people had to use. He lamented that everywhere APNU visited, the cries of the poor were the same. At Charity, Supenaam, Parika, Vreed-en-Hoop and Georgetown, he said, “They asked for a pittance to guarantee their safety security and comfort.”

The APNU General Secretary also reminded that on the same day as his budget presentation – April 3, 2014 – the Ministry of Works, Transport and Harbours Department and Maritime Administration Department announced a plan to upgrade landing facilities.
He said that an artist’s impression of a floating dock was displayed in the newspapers. It showed beautiful guard rails among other improvements that would respond to tidal changes and eliminate some of the inefficiencies.
A further indictment that Harmon highlighted was that Public Works Minister, Robeson Benn, had said that the current arrangements at the landings are not the best, especially at peak hours when passengers are being discharged or are boarding vessels.
He said that even Rawlston Adams, General Manager of the Demerara Harbour Bridge, had stated that the Harbour Bridge caters to an average of 17,000 vehicles per day. Thus, transforming the stelling to perform better service will reduce the difficulties associated with commuters crossing the river. It is obviously evident that nothing was done, Harmon added.
The lawyer said, too, that it is his understanding that when the tide is low, boats can take up to 20 minutes to offload. This causes a backup of the passengers at the Stabroek stelling.
He said that he had asked in the National Assembly where will the money come from to build the ramps, since Government did not budget for them. He reminded that Minister Benn said it will come from the resources of the Transport and Harbours Department.
“But today, we look at another broken promise by the PPP/C government.”
He then asked if people can tolerate another term of office by the “incompetent PPP/C Administration”. The politician insisted that the government’s continued disregard for infrastructure to benefit the poor is contemptuous.
“They must get out of office now to make way for a new Government.”
He then promised his attentive gathering that within the first 100 days of an APNU Government, the money will be found to have those floating ramps constructed. Harmon said that the necessary consultations were done in that regard.
A resident of Essequibo, Jinnah Rahman, who uses the stellings regularly, said, “These facilities are a breach of the health and safety laws of this country. I am sure that there are many who got injured on both sides of the crossing because of their deplorable state, but government has neglected the poor working class; the people who can’t afford their own mode of transportation”.
There were also supporting statements by Georgetown Mayor, Hamilton Green.
Asked about his estimation of the work carried out by the Public Works Ministry under the guidance of Minister Benn, Harmon said that the work earned a “F” Grade.
The Minister and his Ministry failed to address major infrastructural concerns of poor people, he said.
“Benn will have to answer. He is spending on projects such as the airport expansion project which Parliament did not approve funding for,” he added.
Harmon said that the Minister’s action is similar to asking a friend to borrow money to build your home; the friend requests that you wait and give him some time to think about it.
“But you don’t wait. You go in his house and take it. In local parlance we call it thieving and that’s just what Benn is doing. He is essentially saying that the money is in the Treasury and they are going to use it…What these ministers are doing is unlawful and we cannot accept it for another five years.
“All Government officials must understand that if they behave and act outside of the law, when this government changes, they will have to answer to the people. It’s as simple as that,” he stated.
Asked about the possible pro-democracy alliance between APNU and the Alliance For Change (AFC), Harmon said that his coalition is “waiting to see how things develop.”
He expressed hope that those talks would bear fruit and that there can be a united front against the current administration. He said that a team has been formed and will comprise, among others, representatives from the parties that make up APNU. The team will be interfacing with the AFC. He however declined to disclose the names of the members of the team.

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