Sinanan: Government not to blame for Manzanilla-Mayaro Road collapse

WORKS and Transport Minister Rohan Sinanan says neither he nor the Government is to blame for the collapse of part of the Manzanilla-Mayaro Road on Wednesday.

He was responding to a matter on the adjournment of the House of Representatives on Friday.

Owing to erosion and flooding on Wednesday, part of the road collapsed, causing the ministry to block access between the 61 and 70km marks.

Sinanan rejected claims from Mayaro MP Rushton Paray that Government was to blame.

He reminded MPs that the former UNC-led People's Partnership (PP) coalition government received a report in March 2011 about how to address flooding in Mayaro.

Sinanan said that study suggested "a major part of Mayaro had to be relocated because of the flooding in the area."

He added that the PP sat on this report and took no action.

Sinanan also recalled that a similar collapse of the Manzanilla-Mayaro Road happened in 2013 under the PP, and said the former government did nothing to address it.

Displaying maps of Mayaro to MPs, Sinanan said, "The soil type in these areas is sand and sandy clay and swamp clay."

He said this has contributed to flooding in Mayaro since the 1960s.

Sinanan said the problem has been made worse owing to challenges posed by climate change.

He dismissed claims at a UNC meeting on Monday that a property he owns contributed to damage to the road. Sinanan showed a photo of that property and said  the UNC drew a fictitious river on a photo to make its claim that this was the reason why part of the road collapsed.

He told residents of Manzanilla and Mayaro his ministry is working to repair the road.

The House was adjourned to December 2 at 1.30 pm.