2 minute read
Patentia ...
Patentia for the past 40 years.
Rex is Marlyn’s father and has lived in Patentia all those years, he says there have been changes and development in the community.
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“Every morning we see people that come and clean the area and I think it is a nice thing that they are doing. We have the gas-to-oil thing where Marlyn’s husband works, so yes there have been changes.” says Rex. But the development isn’t the only reason why Rex loves Patentia. He says it’s the community that he loves and misses. Pointing to the cul-de-sac that ends the road of Patentia, he said, “Well places like there are where the young boys like body grows older, they start a family and they stay. And that’s how it is from generation to generation because even the house we live in was my grandparents’ house,”Ranuka said.As much as this preserves the history of Patentia, it creates a new problem. With the average age of the Patentia’s residents changing, so are their needs.
One of those needs is healthcare. With concern,Ranuka stated, “There are a lot of old people here. The majority of people that live here are elders. Every time they need to go to the clinic, it’s hard. If we had a health centre in the district it would be easier for everyone.” There is a health centre in Patentia but it is only accessible to persons who worked at the sugar estate. Due to this, many citizens are calling for a public health centre and dispensary.
This is posing a significant problem for many of the village’s elderly population. And as Vidya emphasised, there are those surviving on their pension, and would appreciate it deeply. “You have to pay to go to the health centres and then you have to pay for blood tests. So what happens is that the little money they, the elderly, get they have to spend it back on their healthcare.So if there was a health centre, it would benefit all the old people.” The bounds of Patentia are very blurred as the village is surrounded by a few emerging houses, families and very soon entire communities. The town of Patentia is an incredibly beautiful place with amazing people. And because of its peacefulness, it is a neighbourhood adored by its older inhabitants.
The gas-to-shore sign located near Patentia to play things like cricket and football. And I don’t live here now, but my daughter still lives here and I visit every now and then.”
Due to the fact that most of Patentia’s population has lived there a long time, they have all lived through the height and closure of the sugar estate. On walking through the streets of Patentia, you are captivated by the villages’ humble residents and rustic houses.
A booming old town running on sugar some 30 years ago isn’t hard to see. Patentia and its various parts and people all welcome Guyana’s new oil and gas industry. But remnants of the estate will live on in every child that knows estate stories and every elder who knows of the days of sugar. The Wales gas-toshore project is a small step in breathing new life into the community of Patentia.
