Dear Editor,
I write as a citizen who has watched the sudden panic coming from the People’s National Congress (PNC) as central government finally moves to lift Georgetown out of decades of neglect. The coordinated attacks now appearing almost daily—including headlines such as “Georgetown Restoration Plan a Bid for Political Control, Not Civic Care” published in the Village Voice—are not rooted in concern for residents. They are rooted in fear: fear that the long mismanagement of the city under the PNC’s municipal control is being exposed, and fear that real progress is finally taking shape.
For years the PNC treated Georgetown as its birthright, a political possession rather than a city of people. Their message has always been clear: Georgetown belongs to them, and no one else must intervene—even if the city remained trapped in garbage, flooding, derelict markets, collapsed drainage, and outdated infrastructure. Now that President Irfaan Ali has launched an aggressive revitalisation effort—cleaning drains, restoring alleyways, repairing structures, expanding green spaces, organising commercial zones, and strengthening safety—the PNC cannot bear the idea of losing its grip over a city it kept in decline.
The Village Voice’s suggestion that the administration’s work is a “political takeover” ignores the real story: the Georgetown Mayor & City Council (M&CC), under successive PNC leadership, presided over some of the worst urban decay in our history. Financial mismanagement, sweetheart contracts, questionable land dealings, inefficiency, and open corruption became synonymous with municipal governance. Residents suffered while political theatrics took priority. Drains overflowed, garbage piled up, and entire communities flooded repeatedly with no meaningful response. Today, when central government steps in to correct these failures, the PNC cries foul—not because they care for the city, but because they fear accountability.
President Ali’s vision for Georgetown is nothing short of transformative. It is about giving residents a functioning city: restored drainage to end chronic flooding; clean, safe, walkable spaces; revitalised markets for vendors; better lighting and order on the streets; new green and recreational areas for families; and renewed opportunities for businesses and workers. This is about dignity, safety, beauty, and opportunity for all citizens—not political point-scoring.
What the PNC calls a “takeover” is, in truth, a rescue mission. What they label “interference” is a long-awaited intervention that finally prioritises the people who live and work here. The opposition’s noise is an admission of guilt: they know Georgetown’s decay was the result of their governance, and they know residents now see what competent leadership looks like.
The citizens of Georgetown deserve flood-free yards, clean surroundings, reliable services, orderly public spaces, functional markets, and a city that can attract investment and pride—not a capital used as a political trophy. The PNC’s attempt to undermine the revival of Georgetown is nothing more than an effort to protect its old stranglehold, even at the expense of the people who call this city home.
President Ali’s plan offers something the PNC has never given Georgetown: a future.
Yours faithfully,
Vincent Albert