THE Guyana Government is hoping that ‘good sense’ will prevail among residents of Plaisance on the East Coast Demerara,so they will be part of the ‘exciting national project’ that will soon benefit thousands of Guyanese.
A statement from the government yesterday took issue with the editorial in yesterday’s Stabroek News, which says the administration is ‘foisting’ the e-governance tower on the people in Plaisance, and that this showed ‘disdain

for local government.

Follwing is the text of the government’s statement:
The Government of Guyana wishes to point out the glaring, misleading misinformation peddled by the Stabroek News with regard to the proposed construction of a tower within the compound of the Plaisance Community Ground.
The Government of Guyana has noted that the fanning of flames of discontent has become the hallmark of the political agenda of sections of the private media. Not satisfied with simply providing full coverage of opposition and seemingly anti-government activities, these media houses have taken it upon themselves to embellish their coverage with misinformation, innuendoes and downright lies with an aim to incite.
The latest glaring example is contained in the editorial of the April 8 issue of Stabroek News. In reference to the government’s intention to construct an E-governance tower in the Plaisance Community Centre Ground, it stated that the government is “foisting the installation of a communications tower smack in the middle of a community ground without the slightest hint of consultation”. That paper also took it upon itself to propose that this is an example of “disdain for local government.”
The Government of Guyana believes that the Stabroek News is in possession of enough facts to debunk its own ridiculous position. On April 1, the paper published a photograph of the part of the ground being prepared for the tower site. Had the paper been professional in its approach to the issue, it would have noted that the proposed site for the tower is on the north-western corner of the ground just beside the pavilion; not in the middle of the ground as it reported. The paper’s claim of placing the tower in the middle of the ground offends commonsense.
Furthermore, the government has provided information to the effect that the local government organ was the entity to which the request for placement of the site was made. The Plaisance Interim Management Committee, on two separate occasions, at statutory meetings in February and March this year, deliberated on the matter and only after that signalled its approval.
The government is not unmindful of the Stabroek News’ comfort in affording full coverage to opposition  elements in Plaisance who are instigating the protest against this national project. While the Stabroek News has the freedom to dictate what it should report, what is objectionable is that in its editorial position, it simply parrots the views of the opposition.
Those in opposition to the government would like the Guyanese people to believe that the government removed the NDC and installed an Interim Management Committee (IMC) just to get this project underway. The people in Plaisance know better. The IMC was practically dysfunctional and the number of elected members available was below the statutory quorum to make decisions. It should be noted that community meetings were held and a decision to form an IMC was derived from those discussions.
The new body consists of four public servants and several community leaders. The Chairman was elected at the first meeting of the IMC by the new members.
Community grounds across the country facilitate all manner of community, regional and central government activities. Some grounds house training centres, community libraries, sport associations, headquarters for Neighbourhood Democratic Councils, health facilities, day care centres, play schools, etc. In one instance, on the East Bank of Demerara, there is even an office of the People’s National Congress.
The government believes that the opposition and the political opposition media houses are attempting to use the situation of the location of the tower in Plaisance as an occasion to launch an attack on yet another major national project which will bring immense benefits to the Guyanese people. Unfortunately, many Guyanese are being used by these forces to achieve their narrow political ends. There is evidence that these forces have attempted to block every important project in the country. Examples are the stadium, the conference centre, the Berbice River Bridge, the Amaila Falls Hydro Power project,the Marriot Hotel and now the e-governance project.
The government hopes that better sense will prevail and that the residents of Plaisance will join in this exciting national project which in time will benefit thousands of people throughout the country.