Govt. takes control of 35 more city streets

Mar 31, 2026 News

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(Kaieteur News) – Government has doubled down on its reclassification of city streets into public roads by gazetting another 35 to add to the 22 it took control of earlier this month.

The 35 streets were gazetted on March 24, 2026  the streets are: Fourth Street (Alberttown), Durban Street, Front Street, Homestretch Avenue, Independence Boulevard, Jackson Street, Longden Street, Lance Gibbs Drive, Main Street, North Road, Norton Street, Orange Walk Street, Parade Street, Princess Street, South Road, Quamina Street, Sussex Street, Water Street, Thomas Street, Waterloo Street, A Field Access Road (Sophia), B Field Access Road (Sophia), C Field Access Road (Sophia), D Field Access Road (Sophia),Arapaima Street, Avenue of the Republic, Barrack Street, Broad Street, Church Street, Carmichael Street, Crown Street, Duke Street, Hunter Street, Delph Street, and Third Street (Alberttown).

Government had quietly formalised in a March 21, 2026 gazette order key revenue-generating corridors, including the busy Vlissengen Road, transferring control directly to the Ministry of Public Works. The orders, numbered 15 through 37 of 2026 and signed by Minister Juan Edghill declare a wide network of streets as public roads under central government control. Among them are Regent Street, Robb Street, Camp Street, Charlotte Street, Lamaha Street and the Eastern Highway— arteries that are not only vital to transportation, but crucial to the city’s income stream. Other streets include: Cowan Street, New Market Street, Middle Street, Aubrey Barker Road, Cane View Avenue, Garnett Street, D’andrade Street, Da Silva Street, Dennis Street,  Sandy Babb Street, Albert Street, Cummings Street, Charlotte Street, America Street, East Street and Hadfield Street Public.

The Georgetown Mayor and City Council had condemned the government takeover as bullyism aimed at starving the municipality of much needed funds. In a statement City Mayor, Alfred Mentore said: “It represents a calculated act of political intimidation and overreach, designed to destabilize the Municipality and silence the voices of the people of Georgetown.”

Unlawful governance

Mentore had called the move as “not just unlawful governance but it is the arbitrary centralisation of local assets by executive fiat/decree.” Mentore noted that the sudden takeover without consultation undermines the constitutional principle of local self-government and treats the elected Council as irrelevant. “The roads, which should be managed, maintained, and funded by the Council using ratepayers’ resources, were simply gazetted as “public roads” with zero prior notice, zero consultation with the elected Council, and zero engagement with the residents and businesses who depend on them daily,” he asserted.

He explained that “The Municipal and District Councils Act, Chapter 28:01, explicitly defines and protects the Council’s jurisdiction over these roads. The Government has chosen to ignore the clear statutory framework that vests responsibility for council roads in the democratically elected local authority.” The mayor pointed to key provisions within the Municipal and District Councils Act, that defines: “council road” as any highway or other road or street to which the public has right of access in a council area other than a public road; and any reference to a council road includes the roadway, shoulders, verges, embankments, pedestrian walks, cycle tracks, bridges, culverts, canals and drains on the line of the road and connected therewith. He explained further that section 274 of the Act states unequivocally that a council shall have power, subject to the provisions of the Town and Country Planning Act, the Roads Act and the Motor Vehicles and Road Traffic Act to construct, maintain, repair, protect and carry out works for the betterment of council roads in its council area and to regulate and control traffic thereon.

“Nowhere in the Municipal and District Councils Act does the Central Government or the Minister possess the power to unilaterally reclassify council roads as public roads, transfer ownership, or remove them from the Council’s portfolio without due process, notice, or consultation. The Government’s action therefore directly contravenes the letter and spirit of the Act.” By reclassifying these 22 roads as public roads, he said the PPP/C Government has stripped the City Council of the powers expressly granted to it under Section 274 of the Municipal and District Councils Act. According to the chief citizen, the Council can no longer fulfill its legal duty to maintain and regulate traffic on these roads – a duty it has discharged for decades using local fund

Govt. acted lawfully

The Ministry Public Works in response emphasised that the Government of Guyana has acted lawfully, responsibly, and in the public interest, and therefore, will not be distracted by assertions that distort both the law and reality. “At the core of the mayor’s position is a fundamental misinterpretation of the Municipal and District Councils Act, Cap. 28:01. The Act expressly defines a “council road” as any road other than a public road. This is decisive. Once a road is lawfully designated as a public road, it ceases, by operation of law, to be a council road. The notion proffered that these roads remain permanently within the Council’s jurisdiction is wholly misconceived.” The ministry said section 274 of the Act, upon which the mayor relies, clearly states that the Council’s powers are subject to other written laws, one of which would be the Roads Act, Cap. 51:01. This critical limitation subjects the municipal authority over roads to the broader national legal framework. “The Roads Act, Cap. 51:01 vests responsibility for public roads in the Minister of Public Works, including the authority to designate and manage such roads. This power is not subject to or limited by the City Council under any other law. Therefore, the Minister, on behalf of the Central Government, has the lawful authority to take over and designate any road as a Public Road. The claim that there was an absence of consultation is not only false but is without legal foundation. In many previous engagements with City Council as well as by public pronouncements, Central Government has appealed to the City Council to upkeep, maintain, and manage these streets diligently and in the best interest of residents and businesses.”

The ministry said unfortunately, these constant appeals were ignored. Central Government owes a duty to the public in such circumstances to do that which is necessary to remedy this situation, as these roads have been wholly neglected, are in disrepair, and in some cases are hazardous to public use. “Equally, the assertion that the Government has “seized” council assets is fundamentally flawed. Roads are public infrastructure, not private property owned by municipal bodies. What has occurred is a lawful reallocation of responsibility within the statutory framework, not an acquisition of property.”

Saiku’s warning

Member of Parliament, Saiku Andrews in reacting to the reclassification of the first 22 streets said public investment is not a pretext for seizing local authority. “The justification now being advanced by the Government—that its billions of dollars in investments in the rehabilitation of Georgetown’s streets and the restoration of City Hall somehow legitimises its seizure of municipal assets must be firmly rejected” Andrews a businessman said.  He said public investment is not a favour, but rather a duty. “The Government of Guyana ( Central Government) forms part of Guyana’s Local Governance Structure, in which  the  citizens of Georgetown contributes significantly to the national treasury, therefore, infrastructure spending is a constitutional responsibility, not a license for control. To suggest otherwise is both flawed and dangerous. The logic, that state intervention could justify a takeover is worrying and raises legitimate concerns.”

Andrews asked said today is 22 city streets and the Constabulary Training Complex; what will it be tomorrow? “Is the minister (Juan Edghill) signaling a possible takeover of Independence Boulevard and community streets in Albouystown because of its investment there? Should the people of Buxton be concerned that a government takeover of its streets, market and playfields is imminent and justified by whatever financial assistance was given to their community? Is it unreasonable to expect a take over of the Property at City Hall?”

“Additionally, we must examine a much broader context, which gives insight into a more sinister political plot. What we are witnessing is the unfolding of a deliberate strategy to weaken local democracy for the purpose of political control and domination through financial strangulation. While highlighting capital spending as a cover, the Government is simultaneously starving Georgetown of revenue and autonomy which allows it to manufacture the narrative of incompetence by the Mayor and City Councillors, a narrative it has already began to peddle and will most likely use  as it campaigns in the upcoming Local Government Elections.”

This strategy, Andrews said is clear: provide an inadequate subvention, no different from smaller municipalities and disproportionate to even much smaller NDCs; refusal to approve property revaluation, freezing the city’s revenue base in time, even as the cost-of-service delivery continues to rise and removal of key income-generating assets, including streets- inclusive of sidewalks and parapets, and the municipal abattoir. This effectively strips the Council of income derived from vending during Mashramani and other national events, from advertising placements, and from utility-related rentals. The seizure of the abattoir removes a valuable piece of real estate property with strong commercial potential. One cannot claim to invest in a city while dismantling its ability to sustain itself. That is not partnership—it is control.

The MP said even in service delivery, the plan is laid bare as the disparity is evident. “The Government recently delivered ten new garbage compactor trucks to Region Two. While any investment in public sanitation is welcome, it raises a fundamental question: what prevented the additional allocation of even a portion of those resources to Georgetown—the largest municipality in the country, where waste management challenges are most acute? This is not oversight—it is intentional. If the Government’s intention to support Georgetown was genuine, it would have pursued collaboration, not confiscation. It would have pursued the strengthening of the financial and administrative capacity of the City Council, not undermine it. It would have recognized that local governance is not an obstacle to development, rather, a cornerstone of it. The people of Georgetown deserve development—but also dignity, representation, and the right to be governed by those they elected. Yes, those they elected at Local Government Elections. No amount of expenditure can justify the erosion of that principle.”

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• Alberttown, Alfred Mentore, city streets, D'Urban Street, Juan Edghill, Saiku Andrews

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