I refer to an advertisement in a daily newspaper headlined “WASA commemorates World Water Day 2018 and this year’s theme ‘Nature For Water.’”
The Authority has joined the global community in highlighting the need to preserve and conserve our available water resources to ensure an equitable and sustainable supply for the current and future generations.
At this juncture let me seize this opportunity to mention about a complaint I made to the Minister of Public Utilities, Mr Robert Lee Hunt, in a registered letter I posted to him dated March 7, 2018 and copied to the Minister of Works and Transport, Mr Rohan Sinanan. It’s more than time for WASA to be held accountable whenever a burst pipe main is causing the roadway to drop and trigger landslides. In most instances the powerful water pressure from the burst pipe main erodes the underlying soil to collapse as is evidence on Bonair Road light pole number 183. The roadway there has dropped for more than 15 feet and also a retaining wall is leaning.
In 2015 a similar situation occurred on the same road and the Ministry of Works and Transport paved the entire roadway and built a slipper drains. The residents, motorists and the travelling public were able to enjoy a comfortable ride but then suddenly our hopes for the bus service were dashed when the burst pipe main created an obstruction which prevented us from getting the bus service to resume in the rural communities where taxi services are irregular at best and commuters have to depend on panels vans and PH cars for transportation.
Inconvenienced residents, motorists and the travelling public are not blaming the Works Ministry. They are pointing fingers at WASA which must restore the roadway to its former conditions. Bonair Road falls under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Works and Transport for maintenance and improvement work but in this particular case WASA is the source of the problem.
There should be some form of settlement with the two state agencies in order to have the Bonair Road and Cumuto Main Road restored to their original conditions.
Let me emphasise that this complaint is not a new one and it was first taken up in a publication on August 6, 2009, headlined “Landslide stops bus service.” We continue our uphill struggle to have the PTSC bus service resumed from Sangre Grande to Four Roads, Tamana and the neighbouring villages.
RASHEED KHAN (MOM)
Coryal Village
