Organiser of the march, Andrew Dixon, noted that some communities have not received water for months.
By:
Peta Rowe-Forde
After facing dry taps for weeks and months on end, residents from St. Joseph and other neighbouring parishes congregated outside the Barbados Water Authority (BWA) yesterday to vent their frustration.
Andrew Dixon, organiser of the protest action which saw about 70 persons coming out, stated that the living conditions of the residents are unsatisfactory.
“We were treated too badly…I even had it in my mind to run away from this march, but when I got up at 5:30 this morning and I saw women and men at those tanks and there was no water in the tanks, it hurt my heart,” stated a passionate Dixon.
Proposing a solution to the problem, Dixon is calling for Dr. David Estwick to resign from his role as Minister of Water Resource Management.
He stated, “We have a chief that is supposed to be in charge of the BWA who has not found it fit to come to the residents of any part of St. Joseph to apologise, sympathise, like the others do...We are not blaming the BWA for what is happening, the BWA is governed by a Minister that the Prime Minister has selected to rule the BWA, and on behalf of the residents of all of St. Joseph. I, Andrew Dixon, am asking the Hon. Member Dr. David Estwick to hand in his resignation as far as water is concerned to the Prime Minister…
"I believe that Dr. Estwick is not fit to handle this water crisis; this is September and if hurricane season is about to finish and we can’t get water yet, when dry season comes I guarantee Barbados, this situation will get worse.”
MP for St. Joseph, Dale Marshall, aired his views during the protest as well. “I really must congratulate Andrew Dixon for being the prime movement behind this march… I have recognised that there are people from St. George, St. Andrew and some from St. Thomas because it is not only a St. Joseph problem,” he lamented.
In relation to the call for Dr. Estwick’s resignation, Marshall expressed that he thinks that the whole government should resign. Acknowledging that there is no magic that can make water appear in the pipes, Marshall noted that there are some immediate things that the BWA must do to help make this situation a little better.
“I think it is scandalous that the water authority should be sending monthly bills to citizens who do not receive the service…BWA ought to waive the payment of any monies due to BWA by any communities that are without water…in addition to that there should also be a rebate.”
Although crediting Joyann Haigh Public Relations Officer of the BWA for her continuous support, Marshall is asking that sooner or later, the residents get to speak to the decision makers; remarking that the letter taken to the Minister by the leader of Opposition, Hon. Mia Mottley in January to schedule a meeting has not been acknowledged.
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