It is often said Guyana is not a real place, and that saying is informed by many things, including what in Guyana’s parlance is called “lies and deceit” by the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) government.
On Saturday, Guyana saw another display of that, this time involving Priya Manickchand, Minister of Local Government and Regional Development. Wading through the streets of Georgetown, East Bank Demerara and elsewhere—bedecked in long boots (goloshes), a baseball cap, and a trench coat—she sought to present the impression that the PPP government has everything under control, oblivious to, or unashamed of, the fact that the image of “all’s well” was contradicted by the knee-deep water in which she stood. The water was not in drains, but on the streets, and had already entered homes and businesses, wreaking havoc on lives and property.
With aplomb, the minister posted on social media: “Continental Park, East Bank Demerara. Heavy and persistent rainfall last night [Friday]. All East Bank pumps up and working.”
The Alliance For Change (AFC) was having none of it and called out the minister over those claims, arguing that conditions on the ground directly contradicted the assertion. In a response posted online, the party said: “Hon Priya stop it. It’s the blatant lies these people come to tell us. If all the pumps are up and working, why is the East Bank Demerara still flooded? Why are you out there if the system is supposedly running so smoothly? The PPP continues to micromanage local democratic organs while starving them of the resources they need to function. Under our watch, that will not be allowed to continue.”
Residents in several areas reported water entering homes and businesses, with streets transformed into waterways after hours of rainfall.
In a separate statement, the AFC intensified its criticism, stating: “The PPP has Georgetown under water. The PPP continues to stifle the Georgetown City Council of much needed funds, and then turns around to blame the very city council for poor drainage management.”
The party argued that local democratic organs are being undermined through insufficient funding, limiting their ability to effectively manage drainage and other municipal responsibilities. It called on the government to “provide local democratic organs with the funding they need to effectively manage their respective communities.”
The Government, it said, continues to stifle local government authorities by providing inadequate subventions, effectively denying them the resources needed to carry out their responsibilities under the Local Government and Municipalities Act, Chapter 28:01. At the same time, it has curtailed their ability to generate revenue independently, restricting avenues such as taxation and other non-traditional economic measures, leaving these bodies financially crippled and unable to function effectively.
The AFC further pointed to ongoing flooding in East, West, South, and North Ruimveldt, describing the situation as “a direct result of poor management of the drainage and irrigation system by the PPP government.”
The flooding, triggered by heavy rainfall from Friday evening into Saturday, left several communities inundated, with residents forced to contend with water entering homes and businesses. As the waters receded, the stench of garbage and mud lingered, leaving people to clean, salvage what they could, and assess how to recover as they pressed forward with the drudgery of daily life in the world’s fastest-growing economy.
The flooding has once again highlighted vulnerabilities in Georgetown’s drainage infrastructure, with residents bearing the brunt of recurring inundation despite assurances that systems are operational.
