Vice President Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo on Thursday labelled the Opposition’s push for the restoration of Georgetown’s Le Repentir Cemetery as politically opportunistic, claiming the issue had been raised not out of genuine concern but as a means to gain political leverage.
The call for immediate restoration came from Opposition MP Volda Lawrence, who tabled a motion in Parliament last week to address the deteriorating state of the historic cemetery.
However, Jagdeo said that the government had already acknowledged the problem and had been working on plans to improve the cemetery as part of a broader city enhancement initiative.
Vice President Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo (Photo: News Room/ Vishani Ragobeer/ October 24, 2024)
“I don’t know when the cemetery became such a big political issue,” Jagdeo said.
“The APNU is only now bringing it up, opportunistically, even though we’ve been working on this for years as part of our city improvement plans,” he added.
Jagdeo highlighted that the condition of the cemetery, while a concern, was always seen by the government as one component of a larger plan to improve infrastructure in Georgetown. He noted that when visiting surrounding communities, residents frequently inquired about the state of the cemetery, prompting government action.
“People kept asking, ‘When are you going to fix the cemetery?’ That’s when we decided to focus on it as part of our broader plan,” he said.
The Vice President went on to explain that, in line with prior commitments, resources had already been allocated for cemetery improvements, with $20 million set aside for each Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC) to address cemetery concerns across the country.
“We promised to fix the roads first, and that’s what we’ve been doing,” Jagdeo added.
Despite the Opposition’s criticisms, Jagdeo stressed that the Ministry of Public Works had already made strides towards addressing the cemetery’s issues. Small contracts had been awarded to repair the roads.
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