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CCNTV6
  • 2 years ago
Residents of Basta Hall in Couva have taken to the streets to show their disapproval of a site selected for a Baptist cemetery in the area.

They say, their many complaints have fallen on deaf ears.

Reporter Alicia Boucher and Cameraman Immanuel Nunez bring you their story.
Transcript
00:00 The proposed location for a Baptist cemetery in the village of Bastahol has been a matter
00:09 of contention for residents in the area since 2021.
00:13 It is seen as a site rich in heritage and two years ago, Roshan Babwa, who is now the
00:19 interim president of the Bastahol Village Council, said it was the location of the first
00:24 settlement in the area.
00:26 On Sunday morning, residents with placards in hand led a peaceful protest against any
00:32 such move.
00:33 "We want the cemetery located two kilometres from where it is now to where there is a present
00:40 cemetery there.
00:41 To be clear, we are in support of our Baptist brothers and sisters and we are in support
00:46 of them having a cemetery to lay their remains.
00:48 We want to be clear on that.
00:51 What we want is a relocation of the cemetery to where it is, to where it could be."
00:56 Babwa believes that would be the more practical move and residents tell us they are taking
01:02 a stand.
01:03 "We have already shown them through their agency, which is the commissioner of state
01:07 land alternative sites, where a present cemetery exists and there's 50 acres of land that is
01:12 available and the infrastructure is already there."
01:15 Added to that, he says, Bastahol has two entrances.
01:20 One already has a cemetery and if nothing is done, a cemetery would be at the second
01:25 entrance as well.
01:27 According to Babwa, many avenues to get redress were explored by way of letters to the Prime
01:33 Minister, the Commissioner of State Lands, Member of Parliament for the Area Rudian Darsing,
01:39 the local government representative and Akuva Tabakita-Alparo Regional Corporation.
01:45 "To our horror, a couple of weeks ago, what we consider an abuse of power by this government,
01:55 CPEP, they had over 100 workers at the site, clearing up the site for no good reason.
02:02 And when we called, we asked them why was this done, they didn't want to give us an
02:06 answer.
02:07 We think that they have been using state resources to traumatize the people of Bastahol into
02:11 submission."
02:12 We're told a petition of over 500 names was also sent to the Prime Minister.
02:17 The village is said to have a population of just over 800 people.
02:22 Alicia Boucher, TV6 News.
02:24 [BLANK_AUDIO]
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