MP for Oropouche West Dave Tancoo is calling on the swift action from the government to deal with flooding and dengue in south Trinidad.
In a release on Wednesday, Tancoo said he had spoken with officials the Siparia Borough Corporation and the Penal/Debe Regional Corporation in an emergency session to discuss the flooding woes and the dengue outbreak that has been plaguing his constituents.
He said after four hours of overnight rainfall, Tancoo said there has been significant flooding in several areas of Debe and Penal.
Tancoo confirmed that the both the Coromata River Bridge and the Oropouche River on the SS Erin Road had broken its banks, making roads impassable for some on Wednesday.
He said, “This morning, several residents were marooned in their homes, unable to report to work.
“I know of persons whose vehicles sustained damaged while parked in their driveways. When the media approach these government ministers seeking answers, they try to trivialise and downplay the issue; what citizens of Debe, Penal, Barrackpore, Woodland etc. face is not the flash-flooding that takes place in other parts of the country.”
Tancoo said that since he was elected as a Member of Parliament, year after year he has been doing everything humanly possible to get these PNM Ministers to understand and address the seriousness of the problem that his constituents of Oropouche West and surrounding areas.
He said, “If they do respond, it is to send their junior ministers to survey the damage, or if they themselves do make an appearance, it is for photo and video ‘opps’ without properly knowing which part of the constituency they are in.”
Tancoo said Wednesday’s flooding was the result of inadequate maintenance and insufficient clearing works to the major watercourses in and around his constituency, which he has been pleading with both Ministers of Local Government and Works & Transport to address.
He said, “It is not too late. I am pleading with Ministers Sinanan and Al Rawi to use this small window of opportunity that we presently have to prioritise and complete the works that have been identified as critical, before the next set of inclement weather arrives.”
Tancoo said, “If this is a sign of things to come, I shudder to think of what the residents, farmers and business owners of South Trinidad will face in the coming months, if those ministers who are in charge do not shoulder their responsibility in the manner required. The time for action is now.”
