New company to tackle community woes

PRIME MINISTER Patrick Manning announced yesterday that a new company has been formed to solve infrastructural and other problems in communities throughout Trinidad and Tobago. He also revealed that relief works will begin in flood-affected areas in the Caroni River Basin this week and local government bodies will receive more funds in the 2004/2005 Budget to enable them to deal more effectively with perennial problems, such as flooding. The Prime Minister made these announcements during a two-hour tour of Kelly Village, one of several communities badly affected by last Wednesday’s flooding in the Caroni River Basin. Manning undertook a similar visit on Thursday, before he left for Grenada to get a first-hand assessment of the devastation which Hurricane Ivan caused there.

Throughout the tour, Manning, Education Minister Hazel Manning, Works Minister Franklyn Khan and National Security Minister Martin Joseph, were bombarded with residents’ concerns about clogged drains, badly cut river courses, unemployment and an overall lack of basic infrastructure in the community. Kelly Village/Warrenville councillor Sharma Deonarine complained bitterly to Khan about her appeals to his Ministry falling on deaf ears. The Prime Minister told the irate residents: “We are just fed-up of flooding in Caroni. That is why there is a major project underway now in the Caroni River designed to deal with that. One of our concerns in the face of that project, is how the floods took place. This is really what our concern is at that this time.” The residents’ mood improved as Manning said a Works Ministry team will be in Kelly Village today to make their own assessments and “we will begin work as soon as possible.”

“We expect that work will start clearing of these drains before the end of the week,” he added. In fact, backhoes were already at work yesterday, cleaning drains in the area. Manning said the Solid Waste Management Company will start emptying cesspools, the Agriculture Ministry will begin assessing the claims of farmers who suffered losses during last week’s floods and the National Self-Help Commission will also be brought in to assist.  “In the longer term, the Government has established a company called the Community Improvement Company. It is not yet fully operational. It is being made operational. The intention of that company is to come into an area, just fix everything that needs fixing in the area and then leave it,” the Prime Minister said.  He explained that a similar programme operated in TT during the 1970’s.

“It worked quite well but when the financial resources were no longer available, we had to curtail its activities. We are going back into that approach on a different basis this time and Kelly Village is going to be high on the priority list,” Manning declared to the applause of residents. The Prime Minister also said there will be increased monies allocated to local government bodies in the 2004/2005 Budget and Works Ministry officials will return to Kelly Village in two weeks time to explain their drainage plans for the area. “I am going to come back in three months to see what your councillor has been able to do with that money,” the Prime Minister promised the residents.