Fire victims upset after PNCR gives check to Guinness Bar - no sympathy for them

Fire victims upset after PNCR gives check to Guinness Bar – no sympathy for them

Nov 03, 2019 News

Watching your entire life burn up in flames right before your eyes can be a horrific and traumatizing ordeal for any one person.

Chairman of the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR), Volda Lawrence makes a donation to the Guinness Bar and Restaurant owner, Troy Mendonca. (Guyana Chronicle photo)

Omadai Persaud and her relatives after the fire

That same trauma was shared by a family of Peter’s Hall, East Bank Demerara who on Diwali night stood by helplessly as the place they called home for years was ravaged by fire.
Also on the next night, the proprietor of popular liming spot “The Guinness Bar” stood and watched as his business was destroyed right before his eyes.
Government officials over the years have lent their support to those persons who attempt to rebuild and start a brand new life again.
It was expected that the same would have been done to bring aid to the families displaced by the fires.
But in a shocking twist, only one of these two victims received support. That was the Guinness Bar.
Citizens were outraged when the Guyana Chronicle on October 31, 2019, published the article with the headline “PNCR makes donation to help rebuild Guinness Bar”,
The article brandished a photograph of Chairman of the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR), Volda Lawrence, presenting a cheque to the owner of the business, Troy Mendonca.
In the article, it stated that “Minister Lawrence made a tangible donation to the owner of D’Urban Street Guinness Bar and Restaurant”.
The reason behind this move, Minister Lawrence said was because “that over the years and through his business, Mendonca has contributed to the Lodge community”.
This move, did not sit well with one of the Peter’s Hall fire victims; a family consisting of two elderly women- one bedridden.
The son of fire victim, Omadai Persaud, expressed his disappointment in the PNCR for such a move.
Another relative, Anand Persaud, disclosed to Kaieteur News that his mother and aunt would have been out on the streets if it was not for the kindness of relatives.
According to him, instead of trying to help the families who need it, the PNCR opted to lend a hand to rebuild a bar, often considered a nuisance to the residents who live nearby.
“Guinness Bar is a lawless and wotless place…so many complains come from that place, it is basically a nuisance so how could they give them money? I’m sure the owner has insurance.”
Persaud said that his family received no assistance, not even an “ounce of sympathy” from any government official.
“Nobody visited, nothing, poor people need the help but government didn’t come out, no sympathy but yet a bar gets money.”
“Minister Lawrence, she ain’t care about people, only her people. So many people upset about this, it affected my family, we have a community with mixed people, from every background and they can’t believe that this happened.”
The upset man relayed that he voted for change but lamented that he will not make the same mistake again.
“I voted for them, I have a picture in my phone with my ballot paper to show I vote for them, but never again, never again. That just turned me off. Them nah help poor people but them ah help build back bar instead”.
Diwali celebrations turned sour for Omadai Persaud who was at home conversing with relatives outside at around 20:00 hrs when a loud explosion was heard. A fire then erupted and spread to the nearby home that housed medical students who were not at home at the time.
It was suspected that the fire was started by a sparking meter behind the house but it was later revealed by Fire Chief Marlon Gentle that a lit diya placed inside the home caused the fire.
Investigations at Guinness Bar revealed that a faulty freezer inside of the bar caused the blaze. It is unclear whether the business was insured or not.