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The Mayor of Georgetown is out of order

Jul 30, 2021 Letters

Dear Editor,

The Mayor, Ubraj Narine, and his band of councillors are at it again. This time, they have agreed, at an Extraordinary Statutory Meeting, held July 28, 2021, to seek an injunction to prevent the decision of the Local Government Commission, to appoint another officer, Ms. Candace Nelson, as Interim Town Clerk and revert Ms. Sherry Jerrick to her substantive position; Assistant Town Clerk. Once again, they will fail. Here’s why:
First, the Local Government Commission did not act beyond the scope of its authority; the Commission has powers to act on any and all Human Resource and related matters within the entire local government system, in Guyana. Further, the Local Government Commission Act 2013 is very clear on the powers and authority of the Commission. Also, Sections 118, 119 and 120 of Chap 28:01 speaks to the rights of the Commission.
Second, the action taken by the Commission was not disciplinary; it was regulatory. From all indications, and the contents of letters sent by the Commission on its decisions to the council that body is seeking to regulate, as it has powers to do, the staffing arrangement at the city council. Also, acting positions were not meant to be permanent. Under the act, a council can only appoint deputies to act in positions; the Commission appoints officers to positions substantively; Chap 28:01, section 122, is clear on these issues. Third, Ms. Sherry Jerrick as Assistant Town Clerk (her substantive position) would suffer no loss because she is an Assistant Town Clerk, substantively.
Finally, how can anyone get an injunction to prevent an action, or a decision that has already occurred or taken and implemented? By way of letter the Commission appointed Ms. Candace as Interim Town Clerk on July 28, 2021; at this moment, there is no injunction, Ms. Nelson is Interim Town Clerk. However, before, the foregoing facts are considered, it is important to point out a few procedural errors, in the action taken by the council today, at that extraordinary meeting:

1. If the Commission has appointed Ms. Candace Nelson, as Interim Town Clerk, on July 28, 2021, then Ms. Sherry Jerrick could not properly occupy the Town Clerk’s chair to carry that Extraordinary Meeting, today. She was no longer the Town Clerk (Ag). The Meeting was not properly constituted because she did not carry, nor did she delegate anyone to carry that meeting. If the meeting was not properly constituted, then its decisions are deficient and cannot be carried out by the administration.

2. If the former Town Clerk (Ag) received her letter from the Commission informing her that she was reverted to her substantive position, Assistant Town Clerk, on July 28, 2021 and still carried that statutory meeting, on that very day then she has acted unlawfully and should be disciplined by the Commission because she flouted their authority and acted as an imposter. She should know better.

3. According to Chap: 28:01 only the Town Clerk can sign legal documents for the council. If Ms. Jerrick is no longer Town Clerk (Ag), and she is not, then who will sign the court documents, for the council seeking an injunction to prevent an action that has already occurred?

It worries me as a young Guyanese is that the Mayor comes from a political party that shouts democracy and good governance. How can we have good governance when the Mayor, the Chief Citizen, is attempting to disregard the authority of a statutory body- the Local Government Commission? Today, at that Extraordinary Meeting, the Mayor has issued orders to the acting Chief Constable to prevent the Interim Town Clerk from assuming her office. Frankly, the Mayor is embarrassingly out of order; his orders/instructions are ultra vires. Little wonder that the nation’s capital is in such an untidy and unhealthy condition.

Yours truly,
Anthony Subner

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