Dear Editor,

AS I understand it, City Hall is responsible for the management and care of roads in the city. To me, that means that if the road is damaged, it is the duty of the Council to repair it. Containers have contributed to damaging and destroying our roads, and are sometimes parked in hazardous positions. It is high time the use of containers is managed in this city.

For the longest while, I have questioned whether the owners of these containers were contributing to the repair of the roads. I wondered whether the city was collecting anything to help with that work. Boy, was I surprised when I read that those vehicles were traversing the city with no particular compensation for the damage that they cause.

This news was disappointing because, in my view, it shows the level of responsibility people are given in the city. In developed countries, people pay to park, so such facilities can be better managed. They pay to use the city’s thoroughfares, so the roads can be properly kept. Among many other things, they compensate the city for using public facilities when other citizens are being denied.

I do not see it as being unfair to the users of containers to have them billed for damages caused to our city, and penalized when they break the regulations that are being put in place. I have personally seen containers parked in busy, congested areas. I have seen them parked for days on street corners, and sometimes taking over parts of the road. I even saw — one time while driving through Queenstown (a residential area) — containers parked in a yard.

Containers are also being operated at all times of the day. One can feel the vibrations when these monstrous trucks pass by, and it is no wonder traffic is sometimes held up when some drivers find themselves in tight positions when using roads that they shouldn’t.

I believe that all these issues should be addressed in the scheme of managing container trucks. They are among the biggest — if not the biggest — vehicles operating in the country. For too long, the container agencies and the business people have enjoyed the bulk of their money without compensating the city.

Some Guyanese have lived so free in this country that they are willing to complain anytime money is involved, even if it’s for their own benefit. Already, the business community is challenging the fee being proposed by the Council. I am no economist, but I believe that if you constantly have containers at your business, it means business is good because you have a steady turnover of goods. So, do not be selfish; pay the fee and help the city grow.

The representatives of businesses and their organizations want consultations and discussions on the proposed fee, but these are the same people who benefit from citizens buying from them, yet they give little support to the well-being of their customers. You hear of very large companies, such as Digicel, Courts and the others, adopting public spaces, play parks, community development groups etc., but very little is coming from medium and small scale operators.

You hardly see these people giving to the public, but there is a challenge for everything that involves them giving a little more. I await the day when people would start thinking along the lines of Guyana’s development and not just their personal concerns.
Sincerely,

AKEEM BENNONS