WHEN President Dr. Irfaan Ali stepped up to speak at the opening of the newly expanded Aubrey Barker four-lane road on Monday, he spoke clearly.
With local government elections approaching, he made his political goals for Georgetown very clear; he wants a PPP/C-led City Council, and he isn’t sorry for saying so. However, beneath the broad call, there is an important issue that Georgetown residents should consider honestly.
The President’s statement: “We are not playing politics with potholes. We are not campaigning with congestion. We are not grandstanding with gridlock. We are governing,” can be seen as either a straightforward statement of intention or a lesson in political strategy, depending on your viewpoint.
The opening of a $6 billion, 4.4-kilometre four-lane road linking South Georgetown to the Ogle-Eccles Highway is, by any standard, a real accomplishment. Roads either exist or they don’t. This one does. It includes modern drainage, sidewalks, safety signs, bicycle lanes, and updated lighting.
This creates a subtle challenge for Georgetown’s residents to rethink their choices. The central government has now categorised over 50 city roads as public roads, taking management from the Mayor and City Council, a body still controlled by APNU.
The President argues that this change aims to “accelerate modernisation” and keep roads from falling into disrepair, which is a reasonable position.
Despite this, President Ali’s main message deserves to be evaluated on its own. As the capital of one of the fastest-growing economies in the Western Hemisphere, Georgetown cannot stay stuck in a cycle of dysfunction and finger-pointing between City Hall and the central government.
His pledge to take responsibility for drainage, directly addressing clogged kokers and unmaintained canals, reflects a shared frustration among many city residents who experience flooding during heavy rain.
Minister Juan Edghill’s challenge to critics “You posted the pictures when the holes were there, now post the new pictures” expresses the belief that visible, tangible development is the strongest political argument.
The upcoming local government elections will be a test not just of party loyalty, but of the future direction of Georgetown.
President Ali’s vision of the capital as “the finest city in the Caribbean” is bold and ambitious. Whether the PPP/C gains the mandate to pursue that vision at City Hall will depend not on whether the people of Georgetown want to see happen around them.