ERC concludes wide-ranging Essequibo outreach
Guyana Chronicle
April 28, 2007
THE Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) yesterday concluded a wide-ranging programme of discussions with stakeholders in Region Two (Pomeroon/Supenaam).
ERC Chairman, Bishop Juan Edghill said the purpose was not only to solve problems but prevent them.
He said the commisisoners were continuing their mission to investigate whether services provided by Government and other agencies are being rendered on an impartial basis.
Edghill said the inquiry is aimed at acquiring information about land distribution, awards of capital finance, other types of loans, contracts and educational opportunities including scholarhips.
He said they are also probing into tendering and procurement procedures to ascertain if they are awarded on a non-discriminatory basis.
During the investigations in the ‘Cinderella County’, the commissioners accompanying Edghill and ERC Chief Executive Officer, Ms Christine King, were Reverend Roy Thakurdyal, Mr L. John, Mr P. Willems and Ms Cheryl Sampson.
They met Councillors of the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) and officials of the Regional Administration, the Anna Regina Town Council and Neighbourhood Democratic Councils (NDCs) in the Regional Boardroom at Anna Regina.
The ERC team also had a round table discourse with religious leaders and met members of the Essequibo Chambers of Commerce in Anna Regina Multilateral School auditorium.
A public meeting, dominated by frank exchanges with members of the public, was held in Anna Regina Town Hall, too.
Another engagement on the schedule was an RCA Channel 8 television programme on which the ERC functions were explained and the commissioners inspected construction works on several capital projects at Queenstown and Hampton Court.
Other aspects of the outreach was a film festival and lecture at Cotton Field and Johanna Cecelia secondary schools and the New Opportunity Corps (NOC), Onderneeming, a youth forum at the Cotton Field venue and manning complaints desks at Anna Regina, Suddie and Charity.
The main focus of the ERC is to foster equality of opportunities for persons of different ethnic origins and promote harmony and good relations as well as the elimination of all forms of discrimination on the basis of ethnicity.