Barnwell residents to see light at the end of the tunnel following meeting with Broomes

While the police have made a commitment to address the security concerns of residents living in Barnwell North, Mocha, East Bank Demerara, a number of other agencies are likely to move into the community to ensure key services are provided to the residents. These includes water, irrigation, roads, electricity and assistance for school children.

Minister of Youth Affairs Simona Broomes on Saturday last met with the residents where concerns in all the above mentioned areas were raised and she did promise to have them looked into immediately.

Minister Broomes listens to a resident’s concern in Barnwell North

Minister Broomes who met with the residents indicated that she will work with them to ensure that their houses are electricity supply in time for Christmas, their irrigation problems in the back dam are addressed, their road concerns are dealt with, water wows fixed and the presidents five B initiative is rolled out in the community where applicable.

In that meeting tho, the sore point for the residents was their lack of electricity supply, potable water and the sate of a dam which become impassable whenever it rains.

The residents are calling for at least a few stand pipes in the community along the several miles stretch from that they use as a road. Brooms who contacted CEO of the Water Company Dr. Van-West Charles said that a team will be visiting the community to meet with the residents.

So far the police have already moved into the community and began some preliminary work while the power company has also started working with the residents to have their electricity supply regularized.

At the moment the residents have been stealing electricity from the urban part of the community and have been transmitting those power supply miles way to the rural dwelling of the community where they are located.

The wires being used as conductors have been running across trenches, dams, among bushes and even on makeshift utility poles.

While the current set up does pose a threat to life and limb of those living in the area, the threat increases a hundred fold for persons who are strangers to the community who are unaware of where these wires run and more so the fact that a wire which may appear to be just lying along the dam or in the bushes, might actually be a live wire.

A GPL official present at the meeting last Saturday

At the meeting with the residents, representatives Power Company were also present were the teams shared plans with the residents to have the electricity supply in Barnwell north regularized.

There are several infrastructural works which the power company would need to have done in the area first to make this happen, this is according to a senior official of GPL who was present at the meeting. He informed the residents that among the investments of the company would be to install a number of poles, several meters of wires and a number of transformers.

It was with that in mind that he asked the residents to ensure that they do what is needed to ensure that the power company has the returns for its investments in the community as well as the safeguarding the of the infrastructure.

Barnwell North residents were told that they need to have certificated electricians to wire their homes and ensure that the necessary steps are followed so that when GPL decides to power their homes, there are no faulty systems which can lead to fires or malfunctions.

The farmers who have expressed concerns are water problem in the back dam as well as irrigation problems were told that a link would be created between them and the Ministry of Agriculture where those issues would be addressed.

One of the two dams which is a sore concern for the residents

Minister Simona Broomes in her meeting with the residents noted that the move to have the power company in the community also was one which demonstrates government’s commitment to ensure that every citizens has the good life and that those who needs basic services, are provided with same.