CABINET Secretary and Head of the Presidential Secretariat, Dr. Roger Luncheon said Wednesday that the rehabilitation of hinterland roads has been high on the agenda over the last two to three weeks, both at the level of the Office of the President and Cabinet Subcommittee, and Cabinet itself.
The statement came during the post-Cabinet media briefing and shortly after reports that residents and miners of Port Kaituma had blocked off the Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC) office and the main road to protest the deplorable condition of the road in the community.
Dr. Luncheon stated that Minister of Public Works, Robeson Benn has provided evidence to Cabinet and conceded that the Bartica road and the Port Kaituma roads are in need of significant rehabilitation of some urgency. The HPS said that in both instances, Minister Benn provided evidence of weather related phenomena, and the fact that the design work “has not really withstood the impact of the weather, and the ongoing events and interventions.”
He noted that at Bartica the situation was made “a little complicated by the ill-advised residents who have ditched the road in a variety of ways.” This, he explained, has made the actions of the Work Services Group and the Public Works Ministry more difficult than it ordinarily would be.
Minister Benn has assured Cabinet that the Public Works Ministry is intending rehabilitation with those interests in mind, Dr. Luncheon reported.
Meanwhile, Chairman of Region 1, Paul Pierre, said that shortly after noon yesterday, he received a call about the protest and road blocks.
Pierre also conceded the bad conditions of the road, saying, “It is in a very bad state and some major work may fix it.” He pointed out that the IMC has been doing some work but they were only “minor repairs, nothing major… the weather over the past three months has seen further deterioration of the road.”