PEOPLE ARE NOT FOOLS

Sep 25, 2018 Editorial

Since the election of Mrs. Patricia Chase-Green as Mayor of Georgetown and the appointment of Royston King as the Town Clerk after the Local Government Elections (LGE) in 2016, the city has been plagued with a series of problems.
Today, after more than two years in office, many of the problems remain unsolved due to the perceived high-handed approach by the Mayor and the town clerk, and a fractured City Council. Hardly a day passes by without reading about some outrageous and callous behaviour about the Mayor and Town Clerk, who believe that they were above the law in terms of governing the City.
Their arrogance and obsession with power, their contempt for the rule of law and their public display of reckless conduct have not only incurred the wrath of the people but have eroded the democratic process at City Hall.
Georgetown is the largest municipality in the country with 30 councilors, however, for the past two years, the city has been mismanaged to the point where its residents are not getting value for their money. It has failed to execute its responsibilities adequately to the citizens in almost all areas, including garbage collection and disposal, financial management and maintenance of city infrastructure such as buildings, bridges, roads and playgrounds, etc.
The city seems incapable to collect the $4 billion that is owed to it. It has stumbled from one crisis to another such as the flawed parking meter enterprise; the chronic garbage fiasco, which led to the firing and rehiring of its two main garbage collectors, Cevons Waste Management and Puran Brothers; the Bel Air Park playground saga; the rape of a juvenile by a city police constable; the hostile treatment meted out to vendors who ply their trade on the streets; the constant infighting with AFC and PPP City councilors, the confrontations with the Minister of Communities and most recently, the sudden closing of the Stabroek Market wharf to vendors for safety reasons and without proper relocation of the vendors.
While this is heart-breaking for many of the residents of Georgetown, yet it seems as though they have little or no choice than to endure the bombastic behaviour of the city administration.
In addition, the city’s financial woes have mounted. At times, the city was unable to pay its regular workers, which in effect has underlined the severe financial deficit that it appears to have been functioning under for some time.
The only public known successful exercise by the city was the clean-up campaign which was orchestrated by President Granger in May 2015.
Despite the poor administration and fiscal mismanagement and the perception of corruption by the Mayor and Town Clerk, the government did not intervene. Its excuse was the municipalities are autonomous and should be allowed to run the affairs of their cities without intervention from the national government.
With Local Government Elections just two months away, the town clerk has been sent on leave by the chairman of the Local Government Commission (LGC) Mortimer Mingo who heads a Commission of Inquiry (COI) to examine corruption, abuse of power and other illegal practices by the Town Clerk and the City Council.
The government knew the town clerk has been accused of dereliction of duty, corruption and abuse of power and violating the procurement rules, among others, but did nothing to stop him. But the residents of Georgetown are not fools, they know that the removal of King has to do with the LGE and they will not succumb to the propaganda.

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