Latest update October 18th, 2026 10:40 AM
This new rule will be detrimental to vendors
Dear Editor,
Please permit me a space in your newspaper to express my concern on an issue which is affecting the ordinary stall holders and vendors of a section of the Stabroek Market.
A meeting was held with officials of the city hall today, September 11, 2015 and a decision was taken at the meeting, as a matter of fact a decision in the form of an instruction was handed down to the vendors/stall holders that from Monday to Saturday that selling should commence at 2pm daily until 7am the following morning.
This is commendable in the sense that some regulation is brought to this widespread selling at all fancy hours, so credit is given where it is due, however, I am particularly upset with the other part of the decision/instruction which has made it mandatory and almost compulsory that these same vendors/stall holders, take their rest day, Sunday to participate in a clean-up exercise of a section of water street.
My issue of contention is that the vendors/stall holders are now asked to go to city on Sunday mornings, collect a cap and jersey and commence cleaning of the identified section of Water Street, then are allowed to go sell at 2pm the said day.
I am particularly displeased about this new rule, since the mornings are considered to be the peak hours for any business and by now doing this it kills the intended business/sales for the vendors/stallholders for that particular day. If this is to become a written rule on the books of the city, what will happen to those persons who have to attend church, take time for their families, attend to other personal business or just rest on this day, as we are all humans and need this.
I am therefore suggesting to those in the hierarchy of the city to review and re-examine this instruction or new rule since it will bring some level of discomfort and inconvenience to these persons.
I know that there is a new government in office, but this leaves to me wonder if the administration of the city is in consultation with the Minister of Communities, Ronald Bulkan, under whose purview this falls. If this was done and this is an initiative of the state, I am calling on President David Granger to review this policy as he says that his administration is for the people and this is the opposite to what his government is preaching.
As I conclude, it is my hope that this matter can be seriously addressed and that the officials at the city hall withdraw this instruction in the interest of the ordinary citizens. I thank you.
Dave Singh
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