Parkinson and Retmeyer have my admiration not the Bar Association

Jul 26, 2018 Features / Columnists, Freddie Kissoon

In my November 18, 2017 column, captioned, “A bullet, a magistrate, a road, a sign” I wrote; , “All the Ministers including the Prime Minister and the President and all the senior leaders in the police force must have seen this shambolic anomaly. If you are travelling west on Carifesta Avenue when you meet the traffic lights at Camp Street, there is a large visible sign that yells out; “road under repair, detour,” with a large arrow telling you to turn south into Camp Street because you cannot continue on to Young Street. That sign was put up when Young Street was being repaired two years ago. If you are from Berbice going to the US Embassy, the sign will mislead you.”
I got the date wrong. It was four years ago not two. For four years that sign has been deceiving drivers who do not live in Georgetown. I alluded to this nonsense in more than one column. I got to know Sherod Parkinson when the Kitty roundabout was being put down. I would pass the area each morning with my dog. He was the engineer in charge from the Ministry of Public Infrastructure. I would offer my views on the unnecessary expense because I don’t think it would be a traffic improvement. Parkinson would disagree.
One morning after the roundabout was completed, Parkinson stopped to talk when I was with my dog. I will not go into details about our exchange; see my column of June 16, 2018 with the title, “Mr. Parkinson told me he is removing the sign; oh really!” On that very day, Parkinson did what our policymakers failed to do and this includes Minister Robeson and current minister David Patterson. He removed the sign.
There are many more misleading signs like the one Parkinson got rid of. One such misery is on the Railway Embankment not too far from where I live. When the Liliendaal bridge was being paired, the ministry did not want heavy duty vehicle on the road. It put up a sign that says, “No truck allowed, bridge under repair.” The bridge was completed in July and that misery is still in drivers’ face. One Saturday morning I saw a terrible thing. I wrote about it before. I am repeating it here.
Two canter truckers were intercepted by a traffic car with two ranks. I pulled over and the ranks drove off. I enquired. The canter people told they were stopped and told that trucks are not allowed on the Embankment and the police showed them the sign. Those two cops were trying to shake down those folks.
We come now to the Deputy Director of SARA, Aubrey Heath- Retmeyer. He made a most encouraging statement that is long overdue from the President, Prime Minister and Minister of public Security. I quote from this newspaper what Retmeyer has told it; “In other words, there are some countries like Brazil and Argentina where the court is highly trained and far more in tune with what the national psyche is, what the people really yearn for. Heath-Retemyer reiterated his position that there is a disconnection in Guyana between the judiciary and what the people want.”
Could we have prevented two brutal prison uprisings if our ruling politicians had the courage and character of Heath-Retmeyer. For too long many magistrates have been doing utter and complete nonsense on the bench. Some of these magistrates are filling up the jails with teenagers who could be treated less harshly. They simply are not in touch with Guyana’s reality. Who should be? Our ruling leaders.
The Bar Association has jumped on Retmeyer displaying barefaced hypocrisy. It was the Guyana Government that issued a public statement condemning Magistrate McLennan’s decision to fine a woman for trafficking in person when the law stipulates a mandatory prison term. Where was the Bar Association then? Why the judiciary should not be criticized in a democratic country. It is called free speech.
To date, our leaders have refused to make the wise comments that came from the SARA official. They have refused to comment in even the most innocuous way on what some of these magistrates are doing. Two examples should suffice. A teen girl was jailed for six months for traveling with a speed boat from Spinglands to Surinam without checking in at immigration. A young man was jailed for three years for possession of a spent shell. In the High Court the disparity is sentences is too horrible to describe. It will go on because our leaders simply don’t care. Is another deadly prison riot coming soon? Finally, to hell with the comical Bar Association!

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