Wales, nearby areas to become new industrial, commercial city under PPP – Jagdeo

The People’s Progressive Party (PPP) is pledging a sweeping transformation of the former sugar belt at Wales and its surrounding areas, with Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo positioning the region as a future hub of economic activity.

The area is being repositioned as a “major growth pole,” Jagdeo said, citing plans for commercial and industrial development, including the gas-to-energy project, a fertiliser plant, factories, a shopping mall, and hotels, making it into a city.

Speaking at a public meeting at Patentia Friday night as the PPP seeks re-election at the September 1 general and regional elections, Jagdeo said that lands of the former Wales estate, which were sold off to associates of the former APNU+AFC government, are being reclaimed for commercial development.

Jagdeo, who also serves as General Secretary of the PPP, recalled the despair that followed the closure of the Wales sugar estate in 2016, under the previous administration, and he went into a specific example.

“There was a young girl sitting on a step talking about not going to school because her parents lost their jobs… she was embarrassed to say they didn’t have money.”

The closure of the estate, once a major employer in the region, left hundreds without income and devastated local cane farmers.

Jagdeo noted that the former government sold the factory for scrap and abandoned the workers.

“People were hungry, they didn’t have money, they didn’t have savings; they didn’t even have their severance,” Jagdeo lamented.

The PPP pledged to reopen sugar estates closed under APNU+AFC, but he acknowledged Wales could not be revived due to the dismantling of its assets.

But he said the government has been positioning the area for redevelopment with the gas-to-energy project and associated projects, along with the Wales Development Authority.

Among other pledges, the Vice President pointed to infrastructure improvements, including road repairs, street lighting, and concrete drainage systems.

“We need now to come back to every community,” Dr Jagdeo stated.

Jagdeo acknowledged some setbacks, including delays in the gas-to-energy project, but said it will be completed.

He noted that there has been discomfort to residents because of the construction, but said the roads that were damaged will be fixed.

A printed flyer outlining fulfilled promises and future plans will be distributed to households in the coming weeks, he said, highlighting the PPP’s strategy for the next five years.

“We’re the only political party that is trustworthy,” Jagdeo said. “When we say we will do something, we actually do it… People believe politicians don’t keep their word. We keep our word,” Jagdeo stated.