Ailing Co-op Society launches week-long activities today at Kuru Kuru
DESPITE facing many challenges and failing to execute the original mandate for which it was formed in 1971, the Interim Committee of the Kuru Kuru Highway Producers Co-operative Society Limited will today have opportunity to make Kuru Kuru the centre of attraction. Today marks the beginning of activities to mark the existence of co-operatives, and the (KHPCSL) will, for the first time, be hosting the event. Today’s activities are expected to be marked by a formal opening, which the organizers expect will be addressed by either the President or the Prime Minister of Guyana.
Executive member of the society, George Brittlebank, revealed that the KHPSCL could be considered one of the most disadvantaged co-op societies in the country. The society’s location, coupled with its numerous infrastructural challenges, fuels this perception. Nevertheless, unfazed by those challenges, the society will be stepping up its game in 2012.
At its launching in February 1971, the society sported a membership of 70 persons. Today, there are almost 1,200 registered members with the society. Back then, the main aim of the society was to engage in large-scale and sustainable farming as an economic activity for the village.
Today, the focus has shifted tremendously because of the lack of infrastructure; and farming is now being done on a relatively small scale, with persons planting just enough to feed their individual families. Mr. Brittlebank explained that the Kuru Kuru Highway Producers Co-operative Society Limited was originally geared towards getting land for members for the purpose of farming.
Among the society’s bugbears to progress are roads, potable water, and reliable supply of electricity. At the moment, a well donated by a non-governmental organization is in existence, but does not supply the entire society with water, and the level of output at the pump is inadequate for farming activities.
At the moment, the area is not considered a community where persons settle, produce, and live comfortably. Several persons have, nevertheless, expressed interest in the area. Mr. Brittlebank said that following the coastland floods of 2005, the community saw an influx of persons seeking to find high and dry ground.
The Kuru Kuru Highway Producers Co-operative Society Limited recently installed a new committee, which plans to tap into all the resource persons and every possible organization and entity that can assist the society to achieve its desire to create a better life and improve living conditions for all its members and persons living in the Kuru Kuru area. The society sees the decision to host the launching ceremony for this year’s co-op recognition activities as an honour.
Brittlebank said this is even more rewarding for the society at this time, since the persons expected to visit the area would largely be those from other co-ops; and seeing the needs of the host society, assistance will hopefully flow. All sorts of assistance would be welcome, including advice.
Awareness is key for the Kuru Kuru Highway Producers Co-operative Society Limited, as they believe their community and society have been lacking in that respect. The society is also expecting a hundred percent cooperation from other societies in helping to improve its situation.
Brittlebank said today’s event should not be seen as a mere launching ceremony, but visitors are invited to observe with a sense of understanding the needs and conditions under which the society and its members operate. He pointed out that if the discomforts are not adequately addressed, the day would be just another normal day for the community, since without the basic infrastructure, the area would remain undeveloped.
Today’s expectation, among other things, is that with new professional, capable and energetic people who possess motivating power, alliances will be created. The society allegedly has a vast amount of raw materials which can be used to make the community economically viable. Brittlebank explained that, with the special raw materials located in the community, the Kuru Kuru Highway Producers Co-operative Society Limited can make Kuru Kuru a model community. The resources also ties in the whole notion of protecting the environment, he added.
Mr. Brittlebank told Guyana Chronicle that persons apparently no longer appreciate the role that co-op societies play in the developmental process of individuals, families, communities and countries. He cited the number of persons who are employed by these societies, either directly or indirectly, and said that one of the other issues and bugbears of cooperative societies is the lack of a spirit of cooperation among some members and societies, combined with lack of momentum to keep those bodies alive and active in the interest of their members, and by extension the communities they serve and represent. Despite the odds, however, there have been some success stories among cooperatives, which are prided and which, despite the present longstanding challenges, prove that the Kuru Kuru Highway Producers Co-operative Society Limited still has the will to fulfil its mandate, once the support is there.
Brittlebank said that some society members have still been doing small-scale farming in the area, livestock rearing and establishment of greenhouse and hydroponic gardens. There has also been representation for the issuance of land titles to persons living in the area.
George Brittlebank added that when the society was first started, the land was issued as a block and everyone lived without legally owning the plots they occupied. He explained that the society approached the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission and applied for the demarcation process and surveying to begin, so that occupiers of the land could rightfully be described as owners of the land. The request was accepted and the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission arrived in the area; and now several persons have land titles. There are other persons whose titles are still to be processed.
Asked about the big deal with the titles, his answer was as expected. Brittlebank said that many persons in the area wanted to conduct business through the various banks, but were prevented from so doing because they had no asset that the bank could have held as a guarantee. At the moment, several persons have been able to extend their living accommodation and start small businesses, some in the area and others out of the area.
The members of the Interim Committee are: Dianne Miggins, Fazil Azeeze, Myrtle Yansen, Venus Wayne, Patricia Gray, Barbara Peterkin, James Ponchung, Cecil Ramnarine and Jenette Stuart.
Those persons have been credited, along with other residents of the Kuru Kuru community, with making the area habitable for today’s mega-event. Following the official programme this morning, the entire day is expected to be used for interactions and socializing, while a massive fun day is also planned.
The Guyana Chronicle wishes the Kuru Kuru Highway Producers Co-operative Society Limited success in its drive to fulfil its original mandate, and congratulates the society on being selected to host the launching of this year’s activities.