St Augustine MP, Khadijah Ameen is today pleading with Minister of Social Development, Donna Cox, for grants to be given to flood victims and urgent work on river banks, flood gates before Christmas.
Ameen made the call on Tuesday morning for residents of Bamboo Settlement #2, Real Spring Valsayn, Spring Village, and St. Augustine South, who were badly affected by flooding some two weeks ago to receive the Ministry’s disaster relief grant, food support grant, clothing and uniform grants in order to help restore their lives after the devastating floods.
She says she believes the ministry has the capability to prepare and present these grants since in 2018 residents of Greenvale and other places received this disaster grant one week after the flood. She says most, if not all of the flood victims have been assessed by ministry officials and other supporting agencies in the time since the flooding.
Ameen indicated that while she and Councillors Seema Ramsaran-Augustine and Richard Rampersad have gone above and beyond to facilitate these assessments, and to provide relief such as cleaning supplies, mattresses and basic food hampers in the interim, Christmas for the flood victims will be very dark literally and figuratively as some homes have electrical, and other infrastructure damages, and residents have lost all their furniture and appliances.
She says, while some flood victims are unemployed, under employed, or live on minimum wage, even those who do not, face tremendous expenses to repair their homes and replace damaged items and as such the food support by way of food cards, as well as other grants will make a huge difference in the recovery.
In a previous statement, the MP for St. Augustine constituency indicated that the 200 food cards valued at $550 each given to MPs to distribute was not sufficient to cover the hundreds of flood victims in the constituency as well as other persons requesting food support for the Christmas period. She said the increased price of food has reduced the number of items a family can purchase with $550 thus decreasing the value of the Ministry’s gesture somewhat.
Ameen says she remains available to work with the Minister of Social Development and Family Services to facilitate speedy disbursement of disaster relief and other grants as well as the Ministry of Works and Transport for urgent remedial work on the river banks, floodgates, and pumps to prevent a reoccurrence of flooding of this magnitude in the Constituency.
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