General News - 08
| Health
| Immigration
| Sports
| Local News
| Inside Gda
|
|
|
9/16/2008 |
|
|
|
Hon. Alleyne Walker
Minister of Lands, Co-operatives, Housing and Community Development
Ministry of Lands, Co-operatives, Housing and Community Development
Sen. Glen Noel
Minister of State
Ministry of Lands, Co-operatives, Housing and Community Development
Hon, Ministers,
Re Port Louis Project - Relocation of Mt. Pandy Families
Greetings Hon. Ministers!
I continue in my letter writing tradition and I take this opportunity to offer my congratulations on the victory of your party in the July 8th elections and subsequent ascent to political office.
After 13 years of mismanagement and pauperization of our nation, the Grenadian people have put the brakes on the further slide. “Enough is enough” they loudly and boldly declared at the June 8th elections, entrusting the stewardship of the nation and the management of its affairs into the hands of your party.
We the people are aware that your administration has inherited a very difficult situation, exacerbated by a hostile external environment but there is a lot of goodwill and hope. We the people are counting on the NDC administration to courageously and decisively effect the CHANGE for which we the people voted overwhelmingly.
I take this opportunity to bring to the attention of your ministry, and to yourselves in particular, the plight of families relocated from Mt. Pandy to areas in Beausejour, La Sagesse and Mt. Delice, to make way for the Port Louis development of Peter De Savary. I want to bring to your attention, Hon. Ministers, the deplorable conditions into which these persons were relocated. Of particular concern are:
1. Lack of proper access, particularly for the residents of La Sagesse and Beausejour, which is styming their individual efforts to complete their houses and enhance their conditions.
In some instances, mothers have sacrificed their jobs to stay at home with their babies because they cannot negotiate the road which there is rain.
2. Poor quality of construction of the houses into which persons were relocated
3. Inadequate arrangements for utilities such as water and electricity
It would seem that the relocation of persons took place independently of the Ministry of Housing, the Housing Authority of Grenada and the Agency for Reconstruction and Development which had developed guidelines for establishing housing settlements which Beausejour and La Sagesse relocation could be called.
On several occasions, Mr. Peter De Savary has claimed to have financed the relocation of these families to the tune of US$1.5 million and it would seem that one Mr. Dunbar Mitchell, brother of the then Prime Minister, was responsible for the relocation of these families.
We the people are interested in having answers to the following:
1. Was US$1.5million actually disbursed?
2. To whom and on what was US$1.5m disbursed in respect of the relocation of families from Mt. Pandy?
3. Who was responsible for overseeing the relocation of families including the construction of access roads and the construction of new houses and the sewer systems?
4. Who was responsible for ensuring access to utilities like water and electricity?
Finally Sirs, I implore you to go take a look for yourselves or send out your technical people to assess the conditions with a view to alleviating the plight and redressing the injustice to which our people were subjected in order to facilitate Peter De Savary. As the rains pour, I think particularly of the persons in Beausejour who will have to negotiate all that mud. The last time I visited, which was well before the July elections and in the dry season, sewage systems were already leaking and one had to negotiate little pools along the mud path. School begins in a couple of weeks and it would be quite a relief to the school children and their parents if something could be done to alleviate their situation.
I thank you, Hon. Sirs, for the opportunity to bring this vexing matter to your attention.
Best regards!
Sincerely yours,
Sandra C. A. Ferguson
|
|
|
|
|