Life in the tucked-away West Bank village

FREE-AND-EASY, a quiet and peaceful agricultural village located at an estimated five miles off the West Bank Demerara main road, is home to roughly 200 persons.

It is still not clear what was responsible for choosing such a name for the village, as its residents have to toil long and hard for a daily bread. What is more, after reaping their produce, villagers would now have to deal with the mountainous challenge of transporting it to the main road.

With no public transportation available, a taxi charges $1000 from the village to the main road. With a load, though, the cost can amount to a few more thousands. Only villagers know what they are left with after having to spend that kind of money on transportation alone.

Grace Joseph, 40, a mother of three, who was born and raised in the village, told the Pepperpot Magazine that the main issue at the moment has to do with the deplorable roads existing there.

Life in the village is “very hard,” she expressed, but the residents have become accustomed to the circumstances there.

“The road was bare mud but about 14 to 16 years ago, they throw sand and loom; nothing else after that. The hardest thing is to carry out your load,” Joseph observed.
She recalled that the situation was much tougher in earlier days when mud reached her knees while going to school. “When rain fall, we had to put our school clothes in our haversack and tie up our boots in plastic bags. Then we would wash up and change into our clothes.”

The situation at the moment, however, has improved although the roads still pose major challenges to the villagers. While most residents walk the distances, many others use bicycles and motorcycles. There are also a few cars.

PEACEFUL

The challenges aside, Joseph said residents live well with each other. “It is a very peaceful area. People living nice here,” she said.

The village is also low in crime, although some bandits might hide in the bushes in the lonely sections of the trail to pounce on their victims. This mainly happens at night.
Another positive coming out of the village is that its students have been doing well over the last few years at the National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA). A school, housing both nursery and primary school students, is located in Vive-la-Force, the village after Free-and-Easy.

The residents “really suffered” for water over many years, Joseph recalls, as they had to fill from the trench; they also kept ponds in their yards. A little under two years ago, however, they were able to benefit from a proper water supply.

While they have received electricity some four years ago, they are still hoping to receive landline phones and good roads. Some more street lighting would also make life easier for the residents.

The National Data Management Authority last year opened its 52nd e-Government ICT Hub in the village, as part of the Government’s overall plan to make the internet accessible to citizens all across Guyana.

Joseph recalled during the interview, that prior to the opening of the facility, she would have to travel all the way to Patentia Village to be able to use the internet. With free internet right in their village, life is much easier in this regard. It is a “great relief,” she said, adding that her children are able to get help with their homework and other activities.
Tulsiram Otto, a cane cutter living about a further four miles from Free-and-Easy, is originally from Patentia Village but has moved out here for the past 15 years.

While trekking through the trail on foot on his way home, he told the Pepperpot Magazine that he enjoys life here because he is able to be independent. “Nobody tell you anything. You live your independent life,” he expressed.