Protest in Williamsville over bad roads

Frustrated residents yesterday blocked the roads with debris, old furniture and appliances in protest of the deplorable conditions of the Garth Road near Williamsville.

The residents are claiming that for the past 18 years, the roadway, which is now nearly impassable, has been in a deplorable condition as a result of potholes and landslips. From as early as 4 am yesterday, the residents, armed with placards, burned tyres along the roadway shouting, “Fix Our Roads Now.”

The protest was staged amidst heavy rainfall. The residents believe that they have been forgotten by Government and are now standing up for their rights.

“This rain is nothing compared to what we have been going through, we are now completely fed up,” said resident Vidal Sonilal.

He said there were numerous potholes along the roadway.

Member of Parliament for the area, Rodney Charles, in a media release, reiterated calls for Works and Transport Minister Rohan Sinanan to repair the roads.

“The Minister needs to stop procrastinating and do the job for which he is paid by taxpayers and fix the bad roads in this constituency,” Charles said. On August 5, he said the Works Minister visited the constituency and saw for himself the deplorable conditions of the roads, but to date very little has been done to bring relief to residents and commuters.