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Parking meter contract handed over to AG
Attorney-General, Basil Williams
A review of the parking meter contract has commenced and will undergo its second stage by Attorney-General Basil Williams.
This was told to the media at a post Cabinet press briefing hosted by the Minister of State, Joseph Harmon. It was decided two Tuesdays ago by Cabinet that the contract be reviewed by the Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan and the AG.
The aim of the review is to ascertain whether the contract contains any illegalities. The government has said that it respects the autonomy of the Mayor and City Council. However, since troubling concerns were raised, Cabinet maintained that it would be in Government’s best interest to have the document reviewed in the name of transparency and democracy.
President David Granger during his first address to the full Council of the Municipality last Monday, had indicated that Central Government has no intention of dictating Council’s business, but he also called on the Municipality to conduct its business in a transparent manner.
The review comes at a time when the contract has become tainted with controversy. The contract has been criticized for the protocols the Mayor Patricia Chase-Green and Town Clerk Royston King together with Chairman of the Finance Committee Oscar Clarke and Councillor Junior Garrett would have followed.
The contract had been signed back in November 2015 with National Parking Systems and Smart City Solutions Inc without undergoing a tendering process or conducting consultations with stakeholders.
In May, the four representatives proceeded on a due diligence trip to Mexico and Panama. According to Mayor Chase-Green the purpose of the trip was to determine whether the companies were capable of performing the tasks which they had proposed. The companies had apparently done similar projects in the two Central American states.
The city officials were condemned for going on the trips since it is customary in such arrangements that a due diligence inquiry into a company is done before parties sign the contract. Tainting the contract further, the travelling and accommodation for the officials were paid for by the company.
Last Wednesday, the first parking meter arrived in Guyana and was on display in the M&CC compound. Harmon told the media yesterday that despite these developments, when the review is finished and cabinet is advised to take a certain course of action that is what cabinet will do.
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