COUNCILLOR Ranwell Jordan, who recently assumed the Chair of the Markets and Public Health Committee of the Georgetown Mayor and City Council (M&CC), has expressed uncertainty over the future of the Le Repentir Cemetery. But he is hoping that Government will continue to assist with its maintenance.
Late last year, the Public Works Ministry had helped to clear vegetation and cleaned drains in the burial ground and Jordan is sure that, once there is no plan in place to maintain it, the site will return to its deplorable state.
In an invited comment, he told the Guyana Chronicle, yesterday, that he is hopeful that the same Ministry continues to provide assistance, because the municipality cannot, presently, afford the cost of maintaining it.
He also pointed to the need for the creation of more space to bury people.
Le Repentir, the largest such ground in Guyana, was prioritised for restoration as its surroundings had become overrun with vegetation and an eyesore. It is for that reason the Government had intervened and provided $15M for spraying overgrowth and clearing the drainage.
Public Works Minister Robeson Benn had reported that his ministry would have handed back the responsibility for it to the M&CC once the works had been completed.
He said, last year alone, the Administration had spent $700M on works across the city, which included repairs to City Hall and clearing of the Le Repentir.
Benn said Government proved itself to be a reliable partner, in terms of development of the capital and all other urban areas of the country. The cemetery provision has also allowed for the demarcation and prioritisation of additional areas that need attention.
A restoration committee, led by him and comprising stakeholders from the Private Sector and the M&CC, began developmental projects in the cemetery last year, too.