Tourism Ministry refutes Arrindell’s ‘tendentious’ claims.
The Ministry of Tourism, Industry and Commerce has issued a statement refuting tendentious statements made by Mayor of Linden Waneka Arrindell.
Arrindell issued statement in the April 17 edition of Stabroek News where she sought to convey a theme of neglect for Linden by this administration, making specific reference to the Linden Town Week 2023.
In her statement, the mayor cited that letters were sent since February to the Office of the President, Prime Minister, and government agencies such as the Ministries of Culture, Youth and Sport; Business, Tourism; Local Government and Regional Development; Education, Home Affairs and Labour for support of fifteen events for Linden Town Week.
The Ministry of Tourism, Industry and Commerce has been consistent in its support for Linden and the wider Region 10 as have other ministries of the government.
The ministry routinely receives requests for sponsorship from across the country. These requests are assessed for merit, their alignment with the ministry’s strategic direction and in light of budgetary realities. Over the last 12 months, the ministry has received numerous requests from Linden and the wider Region 10, and we have responded favourably to many of these.
In 2022, the ministry supported activities in Region 10 for Tourism Awareness Month with approximately $1.1 million in funding, and in totality, $500,000 was given in the fiscal year 2022 in support of Linden Town Week activities. In fact, during that period, in recognition of the tremendous tourism potential of Region 10, the ministry launched national Tourism Awareness Month in Linden. The Tourism Ministry did so to manifest our commitment to and support for the community and exemplify their policy that all regions have valuable roles to play in our country’s development.
This year the ministry is supporting event organizers from Linden, who have planned activities to coincide with Town Week 2023, such as the Linden Building Expo and the Entrepreneurial Village & Arts Festival. The support for these events includes financial assistance to the tune of $500,000.
Outside of these events, the ministry supported the Inter-school Kayaking Competition for 2022 and 2023, the Inter-regions Kayaking Competition, and the Fish Extravaganza. Funding has also been approved for sponsorship of the Best of Linden Magazine 2023 publication.
On a related note, the ministry continues to work closely with stakeholders in Region 10 as part of its broader work plan, including facilitating Regional Tourism Workshops.
Overall, contrary to the misrepresentations proffered by the mayor, the ministry has invested just shy of $5M in support of activities and initiatives in Region 10 – including Linden – over the last 12 months.
The ministry wishes to advise Mayor Arrindell that “One Guyana” is no mere cliché but a philosophy of the PPP Civic Administration, which we continuously demonstrate in our policies and programmes, which are implemented in all regions of our country for the benefit of all of our people.
The release stated that “The government will continue to actively support sustainable and feasible initiatives in Linden, as we do in all our communities in our country. In doing so, we call on Mayor Arrindell to prioritize progress above politics and to discharge her responsibility to her constituents by working with the administration to realize benefits for the municipality of Linden.”
