Time to up the game with that road cleaning programme

WE ALL SHOULD welcome the commencement of the annual road cleaning programme currently being undertaken in our various neighbourhoods. It’s the usual government-funded activity that involves de-bushing and clearing of drains that takes place in August and December, and serve a very useful purpose.

In-between, many roads become so overgrown that a regular narrow roadway where two vehicles could regularly pass side by side usually become reduced to virtual one lane roads, making it downright uncomfortable and even risky for two vehicles attempting to pass. Few people want to risk damaging the paint jobs of their prized vehicles being scratched by one coming from the opposite direction, not discounting the legal tangle this may lead to.

Additionally, the fact that most of our roadways were never built with side walks where pedestrians could traverse without encroaching on the road, makes it truly dangerous especially for children or elderly persons to walk along those roads. It is a miracle that we don’t see more accidents occurring.

But no one would welcome the beginning of this road cleaning programme more than those who await the chance to earn some money.

This exposes a simple fact – that of the high unemployment affecting especially, our unskilled workforce. In many instances one notes too the presence of small children among these road gang workers. We hasten to clarify that the young ones (babies and toddlers) would not be working, but just accompanying their mothers who probably do not have babysitters or other responsible adult who can be trusted with the supervision of their children for the few hours they are at work.

The issue we pose here though is, are we getting the best we can as a society from this periodic work programme? Can we not ensure that these workers are supervised to ensure firstly, that a thorough

cleaning job is done, and also, beyond simply denuding the road curbs, some degree of landscaping is also included in this twice yearly exercise?

Too often we see these workers merely removing, in some cases totally, all the vegetation and leaving the banks exposed to the next rainfall. This guarantees soil loss and the possibility of slippages.

We do not observe any evidence of attempts at beautification with decorative plants or soil retention material using such ‘soil binders’ as vetiver grass for instance, being planted.

We do have an issue with soil loss and landslides and a simple modification to the programme can serve a dual purpose-providing the usual seven to eight-day employment, and teaching a skill that many of these persons may even be able to use for self employment. Too many householders cry out for help with their garden maintenance.

For decades we have seen and heard complaints by members of the public about the cuttings and piles of dirt being left in disparate piles all along the cleared areas and not being collected for days afterwards. This was true during the time of the past administration and it has not changed.

Can we not treat this periodic road cleaning programme as a training tool? The old adage applies here, teach a man to fish and you don’t have to give him a handout afterwards. Let us therefore up our game at a policy level.