– leads call for Katu’ur residents to join APNU+AFC

By Vanessa Braithwaite

WHAT started as just cause for a good tongue-lashing from Minister within the Ministry of Communities Annette Ferguson for the dereliction of duty members of the Opposition-led Regional Democratic Council (RDC) of Region Nine, quickly developed into an unabashed endorsement of the government, led by none other than a fellow councillor.

It happened just this weekend when Minister Ferguson paid a visit to the South-Central Rupununi village of Katu’ur.

One of the complaints was that residents were not getting the kind of assistance they need from the RDC, even though funding would have already been provided under the 2019 Budget.

A case in point was the plight of recently-appointed headmaster of Katu’ur Primary, Eon Lewis, who told the minister that the school, which was built in 2011, is in a such a deplorable condition, it’s not fit for holding classes. He said that besides a leaky roof, faulty electrical wiring, and the lack of a whole host of other basic necessities such as adequate school furniture, Lewis said his quarters is so uninhabitable that he’s too ashamed to ask his family to come live with him.

After listening to what the people had to say, Minister Ferguson said the issues they are having should have been dealt with at the level of the RDC, by the very people they would have voted in, and that rather than do their job, their mission is to ignore the cries of the electorate to make central government look bad. “These people who you have voted for have to come in and find out what is happening, so they can go back and make representation at the regional level, but they are not doing that,” Minister Ferguson said, adding, “Government would have already played its role in providing the funding through the Budget for these projects.”

BREAKING POINT
It was at this point that all hell broke loose, as one PPP Councillor, who resides in the village, said that she did make representation at the level of the RDC in the hope that they would at least look into the matter and address those issues that they can address. But all they did was just brush them aside. The thing that rankles the most, she said, is that like her, the Chairman, Vice-Chairman and a majority of her fellow Councillors are members of the Opposition People’s Progressive Party (PPP).

Then, having said her fill, the woman there and then announced, to loud applause from fellow villagers, that she will be joining the APNU/AFC, as she was in full agreement with Minister Ferguson that the Coalition Government is doing a fabulous job where development is concerned; that the evidence is there for everyone to see, not only in her community and region, but the entire country.

At this, the residents of Katu’ur joined her and Senior Council Brian Melville in lauding the many efforts of the government to bring about change in theirs and other communities in the region, and committing their support to the Coalition Government come March 2, 2020 when the nation goes to the polls. They also expressed confidence that those promises that the government is yet to deliver on will be done when they return to office.

TANGIBLE ACHIEVEMENTS
Among some of the achievements outlined by the villagers were the provision of potable water, the school’s feeding programme and the Hinterland Employment Youth Service (HEYS), which benefited the youths of the community.

One village youth leader posited that the HEYS programme was indeed of much benefit to him and other youths, and for that they are all very grateful.

As Minister Ferguson explained, the HEYS programme, like others made possible by the government, was one of the government’s way of standing firm on its principle of empowerment and not giving out handouts, which would only bring immediate gratification, but not long-term benefits. “In order for you to become empowered, in order for you to become educated,”she said, “it doesn’t make sense giving you the tools and not guiding you through the process of how those tools ought to be used. And I guess many of you are familiar with the proverbial quote, ‘You cannot give a man a fish and expect him to know how to fish; you have to teach that man how to fish… You call that empowerment, and that is what your government has been doing.”

OTHER CONCERNS
In raising additional concerns, residents called for the construction of access roads and bridges; the regularisation of titled lands; the provision of transportation for students to attend school; and the provision of Internet services. Minister Ferguson assured the residents that when the 2020 Budget is passed, all of the capital projects requested will be provided.

Relative to the regularisation of land, the minister committed to personally working along with the Ministry of Indigenous People’s Affairs and the Ministry of the Presidency to ensure the Katu’ur lands are regularised, so that the community can also benefit from the hinterland housing project.

The meeting was part of a regional government outreach over the weekend, which saw ministers visiting several villages to listen to the concerns of the people.