Residents from the villages of Whim, Bloomfield, and other surrounding areas along the Corentyne Coast will now benefit from improved services with the addition of a brand-new tractor-trailer to the region’s fleet.
The new addition comes following mounting requests from residents and members of the Whim/Bloomfield Neighborhood Democratic Council (NDC) for assistance with a tractor to complement garbage collection activities within the villages.
The Whim/Bloomfield Neighborhood Democratic Council is controlled by the People’s Progressive Party/Civic.
During several meetings last year, residents voiced their concerns over the unhygienic state in several parts of the villages as garbage would be piled up for days in designated and undesignated areas for garbage disposal. When questioned, members of the NDC indicated that they were in need of a tractor-trailer to carry out the necessary services but because of the lack of funds they were unable to procure one. They also said that it was affecting both the health and commercial activities of those residing within the catchment of the NDC.
Sunday Prime Minister, Mark Phillips and Agriculture Minister, Zulfikar Mustapha handed over keys of a $5 million tractor-trailer which was procured by the Agriculture Ministry’s Agriculture Sector Development Unit (ASDU) under the Rural Agriculture Infrastructure Development (RAID) project to members of the NDC for use within the villages.
While offering remarks, Minister Mustapha said residents have been complaining about garbage collection services within the area which continued to pose health threats to those residing within the NDC catchment.
“We committed to assisting the community with a tractor and we are here to deliver on that commitment. I hope that the NDC uses the tractor effectively because many residents have been complaining that their garbage has been piling up and that the NDC is not effective in their garbage collection services. Now that they have a tractor, they will use it for that purpose,” he noted.
The NDCs continued to be hamstrung in the delivery of services in their neigbhourhoods due to small budgetary allocation from the Central Government and refusal to allow the NDCs to raise rates.
