HGP Nightly News – The We Invest in Nationhood party and Opposition Leader Azruddin Mohamed are raising concerns about what they say are serious and long-standing problems facing residents of Rivers View and surrounding communities in Region Ten, after a recent visit during which villagers detailed challenges with land ownership, healthcare, education and access to basic services.
According to the party, Mohamed visited the area along with Members of Parliament, regional officials and councillors, where they met with residents who outlined a range of issues affecting daily life. The concerns, WIN said, point to the need for urgent and more meaningful intervention in communities that continue to feel left behind.
Healthcare emerged as one of the major concerns during the engagement. Residents said the health post at Rivers View is too small and needs expansion, along with better facilities and equipment to serve the community properly. Similar concerns were raised in Falmouth, where the health post reportedly remains under-equipped. Residents also highlighted the need for a water ambulance to improve emergency response in the riverain area.
Education problems were also heavily emphasised. According to residents, the feeding programme budget at Falmouth Primary and Nursery School caters for only 75 students even though enrollment stands at 96, forcing the school to purchase groceries on credit. They also said there is no allocation for transportation costs, which remain high because of the location of the village.
In addition, the school is said to be severely understaffed, with only eight teachers, including the headteacher, although it is reportedly entitled to 15. Residents also pointed to the lack of a proper space for students to have meals, while at Holy Name Nursery School, concerns were raised that the kitchen doubles as a sickbay, sits next to the washroom, and that the building itself is sinking.
Land ownership was another major issue raised during the visit. Residents said many people still do not have legal titles for the lands they occupy, preventing them from accessing housing support such as sand and steel. WIN said villagers pointed out that while the NDC received a community land title in 2005, riverside lands were excluded, leaving some residents effectively expected to relocate inland.
The issue of electricity and infrastructure also featured prominently. Residents said they still have no access to public electricity and rely instead on personal generators. They are now calling for the extension of the solar farm to serve private homes and not only essential services. There were also calls for street lighting across the communities.
Water access remains another challenge, with residents saying the growing population has outstripped the capacity of existing wells and that an additional well is urgently needed. Roads and transportation were also described as major burdens, with roads said to be mainly mud and sand. In Burn Bush, residents claimed poor roads and transportation costs are preventing some children from attending school regularly, and in some cases contributing to dropouts.
Pensioners also reportedly raised hardship over the way pension payments are accessed, saying they must travel to Bartica or wait three to four months for payments to be delivered. Meanwhile, residents also called for sports equipment to support youth development and give young people more opportunities for engagement.
WIN further said residents voiced frustration over the way some government projects are introduced without proper consultation. One example highlighted was the clearing of more than 40 acres of land for farming projects, including red cabbage and yellow peppers, which residents said never materialised, leaving the effort wasted and the community without the intended benefit.
Taken together, the issues raised during the visit paint a picture of communities still grappling with weak services and uneven development. WIN and Opposition Leader Azruddin Mohamed are now calling on the Government to address what they describe as long-standing concerns and to ensure that residents of Rivers View and nearby villages receive proper consultation, equitable development and tangible improvements to their quality of life.
