Is Works Ministry ready for rains?

THE EDITOR: With the arrival of the rainy season, many people unfortunately are forced to relive the horrors of last year’s flooding and the disaster that ensued.

I wrote earlier on the topic of flood victims in many central and south areas, especially around Kelly Village, Caroni, St Helena etc who were still waiting for grants as promised by the Government. I also wrote on the inability of the Minister of Works to prioritise the safety of citizens over large construction projects.

Putting people first is clearly a strange concept and endemic in this PNM administration. After all, who needs a hospital in Couva when you can spend over a billion dollars on a sporting stadium that still lacks ICC accreditation? Who needs medical care and jobs when you can build expansive highways during times of austerity?

My last piece on the Minister of Works made mention of the lack of cable barrier maintenance on the highways, leading to an increase in road fatalities; the lack of road maintenance and the abundance of massive potholes in almost every borough and city. I am now even more concerned about the work done in anticipation of the rains.

Has the ministry been dredging rivers, cleaning waterways and improving drainage in our cities? Is South Quay going to flood for the millionth time? Is the Caroni River going to burst its banks and spill into the homes of our citizens along the Southern Main Road and environs? Has there been any improvement whatsoever?

If and when this happens, will citizens have to wait in excess of a year to receive assistance from the State? Will the distribution of resources be equitable this time around or will some citizens continue to be more equal than others based on the political inclination of their neighbourhood?

A government has many roles, with one of the foremost being to inspire trust and confidence in the electorate. Today, I am calling on the Minister or Works to address the fears and concerns of the citizenry. Failure to do so will add to the existing notion that this is a government of friends and financiers and that mega multimillion-dollar construction projects will always trump the needs of the average citizen.

RISHI TRIPATHI via e-mail