(Kaieteur News) – President Irfaan Ali was on Friday greeted by scores of opposition demonstrators at Hopetown, West Coast Berbice, as calls intensified for the immediate resignation or removal primarily of Public Works Minister Juan Edghill, and also Public Utilities and Aviation Minister Deodat Indar.

The two ministers share oversight for the maritime sector, and against this backdrop, opposition Members of Parliament (MPs) have been demanding that they step down in the wake of the MV Barima incident of July 18 that left 73 Guyanese dead.

Friday’s protest was spearheaded by A Partnership for National Unity (APNU). In keeping with its resolve to heap pressure on the government, APNU and We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) MPs and officials travelled to Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice) to picket in reaction to the president and his team’s presence at the Hopetown Primary School, which formed part of a series of public consultations for his Model Village Initiative.