Calling Dr Rowley

THE EDITOR: Please publish the following open letter to The Minister of Planning and Development the Honourable Dr Keith Rowley. Thank you for your kind consideration.
Honourable Minister Dr Keith Rowley, Ministry of Planning and Development, Eric Williams Finance Building, Independence Square, Port-of-Spain.
Dear Sir,
Re: Development at Vale View Terrace, Diego Martin

Despite months of corresponding and personally visiting the relevant Statutory Authorities (Town and Country, Diego Martin Regional Authority and the Environmental Management Agency) with regards to the development at Vale View Terrace, I am left wondering at the ability of these Authorities to ensure that the law and conditions set out are complied with. Letters, calls etc requesting information are met bluntly with “I cannot give you that information,” “someone else is now handling it” or “we are investigating.” Correspondence is not responded to and calls are not returned despite leaving messages or promises to return calls. The general public is treated more as a nuisance than as a party who has the same inalienable rights as the developer. In the case of the development at Vale View Terrace, documentary evidence, correspondence and verbal notification that more evidence illustrating noncompliance was being obtained, have either been ignored or determined to be worthless by the Authorities. However, the “say so” of the Developer as to his compliance was taken as gospel. No attempt was made to communicate with residents. The Authorities enter into discussions with the developer only, and at no time do they seek to communicate with persons who are directly affected or who have concerns, even in cases where the existence of these persons is known.

Residents are only aware that permission had been granted when heavy equipment comes knocking int their perimeter fence. Developers know when the site is being visited and as such are able to put things in order and people in place to disseminate information. Residents, on the other hand, are not afforded this luxury and are therefore unable to voice their concerns. The old story of “We had someone look at it” holds very little water when only one side of the story is heard. In this case the facts are obvious, the authorities choose to ignore them and approvals are granted. The authorities continue to pass the buck up the ladder and across the divide to the other authorities. This inactivity, indecisiveness and dare I say, irresponsible behaviour of the authorities means that a person can break the law, suffer no consequences, and be allowed to continue without fear, while the law abiding citizens suffer. Legitimate complaints and concerns have been ignored. We, the citizens, must deal with the never-ending dust during the dry season, the mud and slush during the rainy season, the floods, traffic jams and the overall environmental impact of these hillside developments.

Honourable Minister, Dr Rowley, as the Minister responsible for Town and Country and your colleagues at the Diego Martin Regional Corporation, the Honourable Minister, Mr Dumas the Minister with responsibility for the Environmental Management Authority. It is incumbent upon you to ensure that the law of the land is upheld, that the terms and conditions laid down for a development are complied with, to ensure the safety of our citizens, the preservation of our environment and a country where abiding by the law is a way of life and not a burden to be borne. “Evil triumphs when good men sit by and do nothing.” I cannot remember who said it, but as we look at what is happening in this nation of ours, we must all look within ourselves and realise that we have an obligation to our children and to our country not to sit by. I, Sir, am doing my part. I have gone through the process and the system despite the threats and intimidation. The system must now show that it works, and that “Government is for the people by the people” and not for the select few at the expense of the people. I know that you may feel that this is a small isolated case, but the events of the past few weeks have shown that the floods that wreaked havoc across our nation were really only a collection of small raindrops. If we do not deal with the symptoms that affect our society we will never solve the problems. Honourable Minister, the ball is now in your court.

DEREK MITCHELL
Diego Martin