Perth Village: a quiet location where simplicity is the norm

Aug 04, 2019 News

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By Alex Wayne

This particular morning I was in a hurry to get things done, so here I was rushing around in the city with little time to spare. I knew I was looking dreadful, so despite my hectic schedule, I stole a little time to visit my barber.

I was not one bit pleased that he had an early customer there already.
Luckily, the man just needed a trim and in a matter of minutes, the job was completed. As soon as my barber was finished with me, I rushed off to the East Coast Demerara Bus Park. I was fortunate to catch a hire car that was heading in my direction.
I had bought a box of chicken chowmein, but I am always embarrassed to eat in moving vehicles, so I tried to ignore the growling in my stomach.
After a while, I relaxed a little on the issue when I noticed a couple in the back seat munching some fish and chips.

With my mind at ease, I delved in to the contents of my lunch box with relish, savouring the rich spoonfuls of tasty Creole country flavour in every bite. I would have loved to wash down the meal with some freshly brewed cherry juice, but I had to settle for an ice-cold bottle of Aqua Mist water instead.
The country breeze was certainly refreshing, and soon caused me to doze off, lulled by the steady humming of the car engine and light conversation of the other passengers.
The little sleep gained during the car ride was certainly good and I was very refreshed when we rolled into the Central Mahaicony Market Square, en route to Perth Village.
Perth Village is a populated place in Mahaica-Berbice District with the terrain elevation above sea level recorded as one metre.
Touching down…
To get to Perth Village, one has to use the access road that runs east of the Mahaicony Public Road intersection and travel some 4.1 miles before arriving at that destination. Just as I was wondering how exactly I was going to get there, the air was rent by a shrill shriek, followed by peals of joyous laughter.

I spun around and instantly recognised my secondary school classmate, Afiya Sealey, running towards me with arms wide open. She is quite a talented and educated woman but she had settled years ago for the position of a vegetable vendor, which she says brings her great satisfaction.
“Alex!!! Alex!!! Is it really you? After all these years, is now I set eyes on you again … Is what breeze blow you into this place? Yuh turn a big bai now. Seeing you pon television in advertisement, and reading your articles in the Kaieteur News. You have really done Mahaicony proud.
“I would read your stories and tell my friends what good friends we were in school days. And how our friendship blossomed during our school days after a vicious fight where you almost pulled out my braids by the roots…
“Ha ha ha ha ha… Bai look come sit down on this bench leh we catch up fuh old times’ sake.”
We chatted about a lot of things thereafter. Afiya introduced me to her beaming husband who seemed excited to be drawn into the conversation. She told the tale of the making and development of her much thriving business at the Central Mahaicony Market Square.

“Boy, I am still here trading my vegetables, fruits and ground provision and as you can see I have extended my stall because business is mostly booming, but bai Alex, I have done more. You know I was always a great cook, and while I don’t focus on the pastries much these days, I make the best chicken foot and cow face souse around here.
The boys does flock my stall from all corners on Saturdays for the rich ‘mannish wata’ I make to perfection. I hope you ain’t forgetting yuh roots and forget ‘bout dese things.”
Things get challenging from time to time, but I have always learnt that life is what you make it. I have worked hard to fend for my family and it has worked out for me.
And my husband is a great help. He operates his hire car in and around the district, and it does bring in a much needed fast dollar. I know yuh gone need a taxi to drive you around the village, suh don’t think yuh tekking anybody else. Yuh got tuh give he de wuk, right Alex?”
When it was time to leave, her very polite spouse ensured that I was well settled in before beginning the journey to Perth Village. I was shocked at the state of the road. I reminisced on the fact that the road seemed to be in the same state like when I was a young boy. Commenting on the state of things in Mahaicony, my driver told a vivid tale of how the bad roads were affecting drivers and residents.
“The Mahaicony roads have been a bad state for many years now. Until now after all these years, government still cannot fix an important road like the Burma Access Road, and the Perth Village Road is no exception.
“Villagers are complaining for a decade now about the huge potholes on the road, which creates even more problems in the rainy season. Our vehicles are being damaged every day, and parts for cars are very expensive these days.
“This entire area needs a facelift. Look at the bushes all around us so close to the road corners. Some of the trenches are overgrown with grass and weeds. But someone needs to do something about our roads in Perth Villlage.
“Not because we are in the backlands of Mahaicony, we should be treated like the land of the forgotten. We are taxpayers and our efforts, too, create a form of contribution to the development of this country.
We deserve to be treated like the other citizens who enjoy luxuries that we have not seen as yet.”
Interacting with residents
As the car churned its way down sharp turns and bends in the Perth Village access road, the rain suddenly came down, the oversized drops sounding like hailstones on the roof of the vehicle.
My driver surely meant well when he rolled up his car windows and attempted to turn on the air conditioning in the car. I was startled out of my wits at the deafening sound coming from the air conditioning fixture in the car.
It sounded like a helicopter in take-off mode and certainly drowned any attempt of conversation of any sort in the vehicle. My ears were ringing by the time the rain eased up and we arrived in Perth Village.
Our first stop was at the N. Singh Sawmill and Lumber Yard where Supervisor, Ronald Bahachu, received us with much warmth and pleasantries. He took us through the operations of the facility explaining that it provided much needed employment for at least ten employees.
“This sawmill and lumber yard is a small investment that has been around for over twelve years now. It offers an honest dollar for about ten employees, some of whom reside right here in Perth Village.
“We have been doing well so far despite challenges, but our biggest setback is when our machinery fails us. What I have learnt over the years is that machinery, too, just like the human body, needs to be handled and treated well, needs servicing and professional management for them to give lasting years of service.
If you don’t take care of your production machinery, then they can give you some unpleasant surprises that can see you losing hundreds of thousands of dollars in revenue.”
“We sell our finished product here in the village, but also have external markets that make large purchases by the way of a ‘pre-ordering arrangement’. It is our intention to soon expand and maybe in years to come attempt to target an international market.”
Young sportsman, Benjamin Stewart, was very adamant in his opinion that there is urgent need for a proper ball field or recreational fun park for youths in the village.
“Perth Village is always ignored when it comes to many things that are important to the livelihood of residents. In years gone by, we were suffering from inadequate drainage and irrigation and that situation has not been yet resolved.
“This village has a large number of talented sports-oriented youths but we are not able to develop and excel as expected because there is no proper training or recreational facilities.
“We are still waiting for the playfield that has been promised to us for several months now, but that area is just fenced up with zinc sheets and the relative authorities are not making an effort to complete the project.
“We need to be respected, and to be allowed to enjoy the luxuries of life too as it was intended.”
Perth Village of old
Perth Village has not changed much over the years. Save for the few rather outstanding buildings that have replaced the customary cottage houses, the village still has not shed its old world aura.
To shed light on its semblance in years gone by was elderly resident Pamela Schultz.
“As a little girl, Perth Village was mostly wasteland, very swampy in some areas, with some locations looking rather desolate. There were just a few small houses, very far apart in some cases and there was no school or really any shops at that time.
“I can remember we used trench water sometimes for cooking, or maybe travel great distances to get potable water for household uses. In those days, we used the flambeau (lamps made from bottle) to get light by nights and we never had the luxury of nightclubs until many years after when the Burial Society Hall was built and was later used also for a few parties and special functions.
Farming was always a big thing in this village, and with the rich soil we have here, it soon became a haven for rice cultivation, also ground provision. That sort of practice has lived with us and as you can see, there are quite a few rice farmers still in the village.
“Despite all the constraints we faced, residents here were always contented and learnt to be humble and find positive ways to co-exist with more developed locations.”
Today, the village looks quite attractive with the spanking rice mill, ‘Trans Rice Milling Complex’, which is rather an old rice mill that was bought over by Trans Pacific Auto Sales and renovated to offer jobs for villagers.
While youths from the village attends the Mahaicony Secondary and Primary Schools, some 4.1 miles away, the younger at heart enjoys the luxury of a $25M nursery school that was made possible by the Guyanese Government in 2017.
Before time the nursery school was being housed in the lower flat of the Perth Burial Society building and the pupils and staff had been enduring inconveniences at this location especially in the aftermath of social events held in the upper flat of the building.
Entertainment and Employment
The village does not offer much scope for entertainment, and persons desiring some frolic and fun most times have to wait for social events at the Perth Burial Society Hall, or travel to distant villages. However, just recently villagers have been heading every weekend to the Park Square Resort in Farm, Mahaicony where they can enjoy delectable fast food choices and beverages, have family picnics, and swim in the rather large pool.
While many are still farmers, there are quite a few shop owners, while many are employed at the Trans Rice Milling Complex. Others are teachers and administrative staff in offices outside the village, while a few are still holding to their traditional professionals of pork-knockers’ in the hinterland areas.
Next Sunday our reporter will take you on quite a joy ride as he visits and unfurls the hidden mysteries of Land of Canaan, East Bank Demerara.

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