President Ali leads rebuilding efforts for Karasabai homes

The 22 homes damaged by the devastating windstorm in Karasabai, Region Nine, are now receiving assistance for repairs and reconstruction.

President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali and Prime Minister Brigadier (Ret’d) Mark Phillips led teams from the Men on Mission, the Civil Defence Commission, and the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) to the area on Friday to facilitate these efforts.

Almost immediately following the storm on Sunday, November 3, the CDC ventured into the community with relief supplies such as food iteams and tarpaulin.

About seven families are expected to have their homes completely rebuilt, while the remainder will benefit from repair works.

Recognising the importance of having the Men on Mission play a key role in these efforts, President Ali reminded of the government’s mandate to support Guyanese in times of need.

“We are very pleased to be here. Our only mission is to make life better for every family [and] every Guyanese,” he asserted.

Earlier this month, Minister of Amerindian Affairs, Pauline Sukhai visited the area along with the CDC to assess the situation and make a recommendation to the cabinet.

Based on this recommendation, these families will now have their homes returned to them.

Prime Minister Brigadier (Ret’d) Mark Phillips commended the efforts of all parties involved.

“The whole effort is to build back better. We are doing the foundations, and we will be doing the perimeter in keeping with construction standards. If a next storm passes through here, the buildings and the people will be better prepared, the buildings will be more resilient to withstand those storms,” he said.

The families expressed their immense appreciation to President Ali and his cabinet, as well as the Men on Mission and the regional leaders for their combined efforts to restore a sense of normalcy in the wake of the storm.

One resident said, “I am so glad they are giving me this help. They are doing a great job, and this government keeps helping us in many ways, giving us everything.”

Regional Executive Officer (REO), Carl Singh said this is an unprecedented event, and applauded the president for his grassroots approach to development.

“This is basically history…no president comes into the hinterland or comes into these communities and does basically manual labour. I believe that the president being here means a lot to Amerindian people and this would definitely go a very far way,” he said.

Meanwhile, Toshao of Karasabai, David Albert said, “Today is a big day for Karasabai and we are so very grateful for the help we have been receiving.”