Town Clerk attempts to “illegally” terminate Cevons’ waste management contracts

Sep 19, 2013 News

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…City Hall says pressure will be placed on waste management system

Georgetown might have to brace itself for another ‘garbage takeover’ as attempts are being made by the Mayor and City Council’s (M&CC) Town Clerk acting to terminate the services of contracted waste management provider Cevons.
Council officials say that concerns are being raised over the “unilateral” decision by the acting Town Clerk Carol Sooba to terminate Cevons services while the issue of the company’s contract renewal is still with members of the Council.
Deputy Mayor Patricia Chase- Greene told Kaieteur News that the Council was caught off guard when it learnt over the weekend that a lawyer’s letter was sent to Mr. Morris Archer telling him that his waste management services were no longer required.
She told Kaieteur News that this move would put pressure on the Council’s waste management system, especially if alternate mechanisms are not put in place. “With all contracts and Council resources we still cannot adequately offer garbage collection to all communities and areas. Imagine what will happen if the contract is to be terminated,” Green suggested.
She said that when the issue of Cevons contract renewal came up, the Town Clerk raised issues about the company’s performance. Cevons was thus called in to present its case before several Council committees and external health agencies in August.
Ms Chase-Greene alleged that the Town Clerk left the meeting just as the company was about to make its presentation. “She is not au fait with the issues and the contractor’s side of things.” Green said that another meeting was slated to occur and there would be further discussions. “That meeting has not been held and the Town Clerk took it up on herself to instruct that a termination letter be sent from the Council’s lawyer.”
The Town Clerk has however argued that the Council has acquired two compactor trucks to ease the gap that the Cevons termination will bring. Sooba told Kaieteur News that as a result of Cevons poor performance and unsatisfactory work, the City Council was forced to acquire the additional trucks to tackle lapses.
The Town Clerk said that Cevons is responsible for waste management of the city’s two major markets; Staborek and Bourda. As the Chief Executive Officer of the Council, she said under the law she is empowered to make the termination based on the performance of the waste management company. She said that according to existing system records, a notice to quit was sent to Cevons in 2011following the completion of his contract.
She said that Cevons did not adhere to the notice and continued to operate under the agreements of the previous contract, so the Council reserved the right to give a month’s notice before terminating his services.
Sooba said that Cevons is being paid millions of dollars by the Council to service the market areas but the poor performance has seen the Council receiving the blame. She said that Cevons refuses to clean and compact the garbage in the Stabroek Market and its environs .
As it relates to Bourda, Dartmouth Skips Rental which is also associated with Cevons is responsible for the waste management, but Sooba says that the services there too are less that acceptable.
Cevons management has argued that the requirements being asked by the Town Clerk do not make up the contract. Archer told Kaieteur News that it has been explained to the Town Clerk both verbally and via letter that what she expects of the company is not stipulated in the contract but still the company is being accused of poor performance.
Archer said that Dartmouth, another company he is associated with, has to provide the compactor for storing the garbage at Bourda. He said Cevons workers are however responsible for the cleaning and garbage collection aspect.
At Stabroek Market, Dartmouth Rentals is responsible for the compactor. Archer said the Stabroek Market contract does not include any cleaning or garbage collection for that area. Council workers are responsible for cleaning and garbage collection while the company is responsible for storage and dumping.
He, like the Deputy Mayor, mentioned that a written report from the market clerk showed that she was satisfied with Cevons work, yet his services are being terminated.
Archer said that the Town Clerk refuses to accept that what she is asking does not exist in the contract. He said that since April of this year he has not been paid as the Town Clerk said she needed to look into the matter. He alleged that while the Town Clerk had a problem with ‘Big Market’ services, she has also stopped paying for services at Bourda Market.
Cevons said the company is consulting its lawyers. The termination becomes effective October 16.

 

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