— NDC chairman contends some residents are on a personal crusade against him

“WE need a new chairman!” were the shouts of a group of Crabwood Creek (CWC) residents on Monday morning as they made known their discontent with the management of the Crabwood Creek Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC), East Berbice, Corentyne.

The group initially lit tires, briefly blocking the roadway in front of the CWC NDC; however, quick response by the police resulted in the extinguishing of the fire and removal of obstacles from the roadway, allowing for a free-flow of traffic.

The residents, bearing placards, lined the roadway calling for the removal of Teerbhawandat “Tero” Arjun, the NDC chairman of 13 years whom they are accusing of stymieing development for the masses, while paying attention to only a select few.

“When you call on him or the council for something, he does nothing for us but when some people call him, he run and fix them problem. He always ask what he can do when you bring a problem to him or if you can do he job. Well, I can do better than dem and I know there are more qualified people than him. If he know he can’t do nothing then step down and let someone else do the job,” said Bibi Ali.

Others noted that for the 13 years since Arjun has been NDC chairman, very little was done for the residents and he does not listen to the concerns of the residents.

“He is a dictator! He does what he wants to do and when you tell him he is wrong he ask if you want do he job. Well they had a lady who was a Justice of Peace that was the chairperson for one year and the work she did, he nah do half of that in his 13 years. We want someone who is for the people not someone who sit in them office and dictate,” said RP Bharrat of Grant 1804.

Residents decried the poor state of drainage, streets and garbage disposal to which the chairman is allegedly turning a blind eye. They are calling on the authorities to have him removed from his posit and make way for someone with vision.

Further, the residents stated that despite several complaints to high ranking officials, the chairman remains in office. They have since signed a petition which has over 200 signatures. The petition will be submitted to Local Government Minister, Nigel Dharamlall.

Meanwhile, in an invited comment, the chairman refuted the residents’ allegations. He believes that the action of the protestors stem from a decision that was made to deny a permit for the construction of a poultry farm in a residential area.

“The leader of the protest was constructing a chicken pen without the permission of the NDC and when we asked him he said ‘we can’t stop him’. The sanitary officer explained to him and followed protocol and the matter eventually went to court and he lost the case because a chicken pen of that size cannot be constructed in a residential area, so since then, he has been criticising me and the NDC and now he has a group of them that join he,” the chairman said.

Arjun added that he conducts his duty as per the Laws of Guyana and for that he has been called several names because it does not find favour with some residents. The CWC NDC council is expected to meet on Wednesday to elect office bearers, including the chairman.