–Agriculture Ministry rebuffs claims made by Region 10 Chairman

THE Ministry of Agriculture through the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA), over the last four years, has executed a series of drainage and irrigation works in Linden and other parts of the region.
This was disclosed in a press release by the Agriculture Ministry, which stated that this is contrary to the claims made by Region 10 Chairman, Deron Adams in a recent news article.

“It is clear that the Regional Chairman is prioritising petty politics over the welfare of the citizens he is sworn to serve, and that is something the Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali-led administration does not tolerate or condone,” the release said.
Against this backdrop, the ministry related that the government through NDIA has consistently and diligently executed drainage, irrigation and flood mitigation projects to protect the lives of citizens nationwide and in Region 10.
The statement went on to add, “While in its role and mandate the NDIA has executed a series of critical and effective projects aimed at upgrading and improving Linden’s drainage and irrigation infrastructure, it is the responsibility which the municipality and RDC of Region 10 failed to do. Their incompetence ultimately and unfortunately resulted in the flooding of several communities in Linden.”

Further, it was stated that requests that were documented in a letter sent to the Ministry of Agriculture for assistance with drainage and irrigation works were all honoured. The ministry said additional requests were sent following the completion of those works.
“It should be reiterated that the regional authorities failed to fulfil their obligations to maintain these channels. This failure and negligence to maintain these critical drainage channels is what caused the drains to become heavily silted and unable to function as they were designed to,” the release added.
Meanwhile, the ministry also released a list of works carried out across the region in areas such as West Watooka, Tacama, Coomacka and Kwakwani among other areas.