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Scores left stranded as bus drivers continue strike at Coomacka
By Jacquey Bourne
As minibus drivers at Coomacka yesterday went on the second day of their strike action, school children, teachers and other class of workers were left stranded in the community and other outlying areas.
Some of the school children stranded on Monday.
The drivers have insisted they will continue their strike action until the road is fixed.
According to one driver and minibus owner Robert Gentle, the reason for their decision to strike is a direct result of the condition of the access road and bridges joining the four communities (Nottinghamshire, Siberian/Old England, Coomacka, Three Friends/Yaribo) commonly known as the ‘mines’.
“We celebrated 100 years of bauxite mining in this country just last year; now after 100 years of bauxite mining the persons who are affected by the extraction of this bauxite mineral have no modern convenience. Our road is so terrible that it takes one hour and odd minutes to meet to Linden. If we are to continue to work under this condition it means one of two things will have to happen.”
Gentle noted that a bus was donated to the community to transport school children but opined that this is the second term of the school year and the bus is still not operational.
“The Government gave us a bus and it make one attempt at a trip in six months. Why? Because the road is bad and when the bus came and stick up and had to get pull out, the bus went and never came back. Now the Region and the Regional Chairman know that this road is in a terrible state because they never send back de bus; but they expect private operators to continue to work under this condition. This is the worse Christmas road in ten years. Now we got a body who says they are going to provide a better life, nothing is better about what is going on in the mines.”
Due to the condition of the roads some children had to repeat a class because they were late and couldn’t write some of the end of term examinations. One female New Silver City Secondary School student said that she wants to go to school but she is forced to stay at home because of the condition of the road and the drivers’ decision to strike. A male fifth former of the same school said he is very upset that he cannot go to school.
“The road has really deteriorated and I am a CXC student and it is very hard when you get to school late. I want the road fixed because I am writing CXC in a couple of months and I have to get to school.”
BRIDGES
In response to the residents’ complaints in front of the Regional Democratic Council yesterday, Regional Chairman Renis Morian said that there are two initiatives in place. He claimed he took photographs of the erosion of the river, the bridges and the road and sent them with letters to the Ministry of Public Infrastructure, Civil Defence Commission and Maritime Administration Department.
In relation to the road, the Regional Chairman said he had talks with engineers and a hydraulic engineer, based on the volume of water that is flowing through the Coomacka and the Three Friends area.
“…Hence I’m aware that plans are afoot to do work on the road, but what we would have done at the level of the Regional Democratic Council in the short term to alleviate in terms of getting the children to school… there is a contractor who is on the road right now working while we wait the intervention of the Ministry of Public Infrastructure. So right now as it is, Mr. Bella is on the road working.”
At that juncture the residents intervened in unison ‘no, nobody ent wukking deh, we just come from deh’. The Chairman continued, saying the contractor left Linden, and again he was interrupted by the residents. However, he concluded by disclosing that the man “got the contract to do the road.”
The Regional Chairman then bluntly refused to answer questions from this reporter.
In the meantime, children are still stranded unless they travel with the BOSAI workers’ bus.
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