CLOGGED drains, floating garbage, flooded pavements and streets, chaotic parking, elevated goods inside stores and general confusion became the new normal in Georgetown yesterday following intermittent showers between Wednesday evening and Thursday.Yesterday many businesses were forced to employ preventative measures to keep water from entering their stores while others who could not were forced to mount their goods which are on sale.

The Guyana Chronicle while traversing mainly Regent Street where most of the commercial activities of the city are located found total confusion and congestion as pedestrians were forced to abandon flooded pavements and converge in the streets amidst the floating garbage.
The fact that pedestrians were forced to use the roadways as the walking path saw the width of the road for the use of vehicles being narrowed.
Yesterday also saw the bad judgement of several business owners who moved their goods even further onto the roadway as the waters covered the pavement outside their stores where they would usually vend.

The situation of clogged drains in the city saw businesses, vehicles and pedestrians competing for dry space on Regent Street which could have been described as nothing but chaotic.
The Georgetown Mayor and City Council has been at logger heads with the Ministry of Local Government with respect to its responsibility and the need to ensure that City Hall fulfils its mandate of ensuring that the city is properly managed.
The Council on the other hand has accused the government of not granting its wish to increase taxes and implement other environmental taxes and revenue-generating

activities.

The Government of Guyana for its part has allocated one billion Guyana dollars in its 2014 National Budget dedicated to a countrywide clean-up exercise. Half of that amount has been dedicated to the Capital, Georgetown.
Georgetown was once referred to as the Garden City. Now this very city is referred to as “Garbage City”.

(By Leroy Smith )