Vendors’ Union wants dialogue with M&CC to prevent recurrence of Bourda suspension

Sep 11, 2016 News

President of the Guyana Market Vendors Union, Eon Andrews, has taken the position that there needs to be dialogue between the newly-established union and the Georgetown Mayor and City Council, so as to avoid a recurrence of the suspension of vending last Tuesday on Robb Street between Alexander and Bourda Streets.
During an interview with this publication yesterday, Andrews said that dialogue is what his organisation has been calling for since its establishment. The union first came into being on July 28, 2016. Andrews said having to always clash with the Council, particularly its administrator, Town Clerk Royston King, isn’t an avenue of productive dispute resolution.
Andrews believes that having the Vendors under one umbrella seems to have stirred some fear in the Town Clerk for not wanting to engage the Union to discuss and settle matters affecting the city in relation to vending.
Moreover, the Union’s President is asking vendors to be more militant in light of the constant harassment by constables. He relayed an instance whereby a man was accosted by constables for littering, however, when they were required to appear and give evidence of the offence, no one showed up.
Andrews said that there are several issues which the Union has been made aware of which are affecting the vendors, and as such, the body wishes to engage the Council to have them addressed.
In July last, a letter was sent informing the Council of the Union’s presence and interest in representing stallholders and vendors in Georgetown. At that time, Andrews said that he expected Council would have engaged the body directly instead of having meetings whereby all vendors were invited.
The wisdom behind this was to save stallholders from having to leave their post to attend meetings. Having the Union is to allow vendors to continue plying their trade knowing that their interests are being represented at any particular forum.
Andrews had described the state of vending in Georgetown as having gone to a “low level,” whereby constables have to be spying on vendors and running behind them in the event of some violation. He explained that the Constabulary is not mandated to look into vending but rather to function as a crime-fighting unit of the City.
According to the objectives of the Union, in addition to helping vendors, it plans to offer assistance to the Ministry of Tourism Industry and Commerce in fixing prices and charges for vendors in the various Municipalities.
King’s actions on Tuesday were condemned because it caused vendors to lose out on much needed income as they were suspended from plying their trade without prior notice. They were given no warning as the Town Clerk proceeded to shut down the area. The day’s losses were estimated to amount to millions since the majority of their goods were perishables.

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Vendors’ Union wants dialogue with M&CC to prevent recurrence of Bourda suspension

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