Staff of Local Government Commission to receive outstanding salaries

Feb 24, 2019 News

Staff of the Local Government Commission (LGC) will receive their outstanding remuneration, a source close to the Commission revealed this week.

Chairman of the LGC, Mortimer Mingo

The decision was made following a meeting between Chairman of the LGC, Mortimer Mingo, and the Finance Ministry.
Kaieteur News understands, further, that the outstanding salaries for both January and February 2019 will be released.
Reports had emerged that the commission had virtually closed its doors as a result of lack of funding. Officials close to the Commission reported last month that the staff of the Local Government Commission (LGC) and its Commissioners had not been paid their salaries.
Former Local Government Minister and LGC Commissioner, Norman Whittaker, subsequently issued a statement detailing the impact the issue was likely to have on the operations of the duly constituted body.
According to Whittaker, officials attached to the Ministry of Communities are promoting an insidious parallel administration aimed at interfering with the work of the Commission by way of unauthorized interventions and directives.

In the letter he noted, “As at January 31, 2019, the staff of the Local Government Commission and its Commissioners, have not been paid their salaries because the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Communities has either unilaterally decided or has been directed not to sign the cheque to facilitate such payment.”
According to Whittaker, the issue not only stymies the work of the LGC but also denies the Commission staff the benefits to which they are entitled and which is provided for the Commission.
“The Local Government Commission is rooted in the bowels of the Constitution of Guyana (Refer Article 78A of the Constitution); and is specifically provided for under the Local Government Commission Act No.18 of 2013.”
The LGC commissioner noted, too, that the law provides for the LGC to independently manage its affairs within the ambit of the Constitution and the Local Government Commission Act.