by Nicole Telford
Georgetown, Guyana – Former Minister of Public Infrastructure, David Patterson, has expressed serious concerns over the recent massive power failure at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) on July 27, 2024. Speaking with Village Voice News, Patterson highlighted that during the five years of APNU/AFC in office, such an event never occurred, even without Guyana’s oil money.
Patterson attributed the complete power failure to a dereliction of duty, emphasizing that the generating systems external to the central power supply of the airport were left in excellent working condition by the APNU/AFC administration. “These systems facilitated the lighting up of the airstrip in cases of power failures, minimizing the cancellation of incoming and outgoing flights at night,” Patterson explained. He stressed that these systems were on scheduled maintenance checks to ensure full generation supply.
However, Patterson opined that the backup systems have not been regularly maintained by the current airport management, leading to a failure in smooth switchover during power outages. This has resulted in significant disruptions, including the complete power failures on June 7, 2024, and again on July 27, 2024. These outages have caused considerable inconvenience to passengers, flight cancellations, and rerouting.
“The CJIA usually bears the cost for these flight delays by waiving landing fees and negotiating other agreements,” Patterson said. He pointed out that this financial burden could hinder further development of central services at the airport.
The former minister’s remarks have highlighted serious operational lapses and underscored the need for immediate corrective measures to ensure the reliability of power supply at Guyana’s premier airport.
