KINGSTON - The establishment of a multi-disciplinary task force, which will include members of civil society, has been approved by Cabinet to aid the City’s transformation under the new government and completely turn the drainage situation around.
This was announced by Minister of Public Infrastructure David Patterson, on June 3, 2015 during a press conference at his Ministry’s Boardroom, Wight’s Lane, Kingston, Georgetown.
The task force, for which the Minister is to begin working on its terms of reference, is expected to begin work after two weeks.
It is intended to address the city’s drainage, traffic management, and urban rehabilitation, and will comprise three aspects; focus on the drainage system in the city, traffic management and other general rehabilitative works. The first area of priority is that of drainage.
The task force is expected to present a holistic plan for the further renewal of Georgetown and serve as a realistic long - term solution to the drainage situation in the capital city.
Despite its approval, discussion between the Minister and the Guyana Bar Association (GBA) is still pending, as this will allow him to review the legal aspects of the works in accordance with the various Acts.
Minister Patterson also outlined that he is examining the option of having the city mapped in order to get a clearer picture of the drainage alignment so that better results can be produced after the force concludes its rehabilitative works.
The Minister also noted that some hard, social and political decisions would have to be made in the near feature, with regards to some possible relocation of houses along the East Coast Demerara that may have been built in very low lying areas and are subjected to more consequences of flooding as a result of even a small amount of heavy rainfall.
Further, the Minister desires to have a Website and a Facebook page created to allow more input from civil society in the works that will be done.
