…following visit by President in November
Head of the Presidential Secretariat, Dr. Roger Luncheon, said Thursday that Cabinet has given its no objection to a contract for the construction of a market tarmac at Plaisance, delivering on a promise that President Jagdeo made in November during a visit to the community.
According to Dr. Luncheon, who spoke at a press conference at Office of the President, the contract is in the amount of $35.1M.
President Jagdeo, during the visit on November 12, assured residents of Plaisance on the East Coast of Demerara that the Government will be financing the paving of a section of the reserve on the sides of the Railway Embankment to enable them to sell.
He had told them that tenders would have been invited in a matter of weeks and the works will begin thereafter. The President has promised to return to the area in a matter of weeks when the works would have commenced.
He told them that it started as a small project which came to Cabinet, “but I thought it was limited, so I came out here this afternoon with the ministers to look at a more expansive project for the area.”
The President stated that people want to continue selling and he thought that in a society like Guyana’s, “we have to allow people to make a living, even if they have to sell by the roadside.” But he said they have to do so in a tasteful way and an orderly way. “This is all that we ask,” the President said.
President Jagdeo had also asked the residents to ensure that the structures that they build on the paved roadside are neat.
Accompanying the President on the tour in November were Minister of Transport and Hydraulics Mr. Robeson Benn, Minister of Local Government and Regional Development Mr. Kellawan Lall, Finance Secretary Mr. Neermal Rekha, and staff of the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Public Works.