$2.5B Sophia enhancement initiative

guyana chronicle editorial, December 3, 2015

Last week the government announced that the Sophia community would benefit from $2.5 billion in contracts aimed at improving electricity supply and resurfacing the roadways. This is a most welcome announcement. For too long this community which is home to thousands of citizens of all ethnic backgrounds have had to endure the untold hardships that resulted from substandard infrastructure. In a country where roads, especially those in poor neighbourhoods, have generally left a lot to be desired, the ones in Sophia are particularly bad. Residents have complained over and over about roadways that are in most cases not even fit for walking. When one adds the electricity woes and the inadequate access to other basic services, this announcement by the government takes on greater significance. It is a crying shame that people are forced to live under such conditions. There is, for example, a relationship between bad roads, inadequate water and electricity supplies and educational standards. Such conditions also encourage crime at a higher than normal rate and negatively affect freedom of movement. People in such communities are also challenged to arrive at work on time as transportation flow to several sections of the community are seriously affected. The wear and tear on vehicles are higher than normal. In such conditions women and children are most affected. After decades of neglect by successive PPP/C governments, that situation is about to change in a dramatic way. Providing such facilities to communities should be a primary function of all governments; residents should not see it as a gift from the government. Invariably, it is taxpayers’ money that is being spent. But some governments are much more forthcoming when it comes to spending public funds on the poor. In that regard this government stands out. The government has kept its promise to help lift the least among us—the poor. As Minister Harmon puts it “as a general rule we would like to see communities with proper roads, proper lights, and proper water facilities.” The Minister went on to point out that the government intends to make such interventions a staple during its tenure. In other words, this is not a one-time thing. According to Harmon, “While it might not be a part of every single contract the government does I believe it’s the government intention to ensure that every community receives that facility…This is why we moved away from a Ministry of Housing to a Ministry of Communities because we believe housing is a part of the community, and the community must comprise of certain things like schools, police stations, street lights and so forth so it’s a total package.” We are happy for the residents of Sophia and hope that the community would in a short while be transformed into the kind of space that would attract investments and in which citizens would in the words of Bob Marley feel “free to roam the open space.” They deserve nothing less. We also hope that the multitude of unemployed citizens, particularly the youth, would find employment through these projects. It is only right that monies being spent on the community should, in part, serve to enhance residents’ lives by way of employment. For us, this must be part of the package to ensure what President Granger and his government call” the good life.”