Mayor clears air on removal of acting Town Clerk

Dec 17, 2020 News

Candace Nelson has been returned to her Substantive Training Officer position.

Kaieteur News – City Mayor Ubraj Narine, at a press conference yesterday, addressed concerns over the removal of the Town Clerk (ag), Candace Nelson.
Labelling the incident which took place at the statutory meeting held last Monday as an embarrassment to this Council, Mayor Narine noted that Nelson was put in the position to act after the acting Town Clerk, Sherry Jerrick, proceeded on vacation.“For the past two years I’m here as Mayor I never faced something like that…We placed Ms. Candace Nelson to act in the position and at the first meeting we had lots of issues where she said that she is not taking instruction from this Council,” he stated. According to the Mayor, Nelson then claimed that her supervisory body is the Local Government Commission (LGC). He said that as a result, the Council moved a motion to immediately remove her as acting Town Clerk.

On leave: Town Clerk (ag), Sherry Jerrick.

The Mayor said that she was then replaced with the assistant Town Clerk, Julian Orgista. Additionally, Mayor Narine told the press that the Council subsequently instructed that a Human Resource Management committee meeting be held the next day to further rectify the issue.
He said that it was there that a decision was taken to have Nelson, who was previously acting in the capacity of Deputy Town Clerk, return to the position of Training Officer, her substantive post. According to the Mayor, Orgista will carry out Town Clerk duties as outlined by the Municipal and District Council Act Chapter 28:01.
He stressed that Chapter 28:01 clearly states that the Town Clerk or an officer of the Council “who you can report to, who you actually take directions from, who instructs you and all these things that actually goes for all other local government or statutory officers that work for the M&CC.”
“So, it was shocking, most of the councillors were surprised at the behaviour of the Town Clerk,” Mayor Narine added. The Mayor later noted that the issue was caused by an issue involving a letter to the LGC by Nelson which was never approved by the Council.
He explained that Nelson failed to carry out instructions regarding the said letter. “I said to her take this letter to Council because Council has to give a direction to the Town Clerk how to address such letter. And she failed to do so. She had done the opposite, instead she instructed the HR manager to carry out the duty of the LGC and you and me know, that there is no commission in place and the secretariat of the commission cannot function without a body, the laws states it clearly,” the Mayor posited.

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