The ongoing feud involving Parika market roadside vendors and government over the location of stalls boiled down on Thursday when Minister of Local Government and Regional Development, Kellawan Lall met with vendors.
He made a plea for the vendors to return to their stalls that were constructed in the market by next Friday, assuring them that a solution would be forthcoming once they cooperate, according to a press release from the Regional Administration Office.
Lall told vendors that vending on the roadside is illegal and it poses a serious threat to the safety of road users. He also pointed to the developmental works that are being undertaken at other market places throughout the country.
Additionally, he said, government’s development plans cannot be stymied by vending on the roadside, adding that it is imperative that they be removed to allow some semblance of order to be restored both at the market places and on the roadways.
But the 25 vendors present for the meeting informed the minister that the sale of alcohol, the absence of a security fence and vagrancy have posed major problems for them and are the main reasons the market is not ideal for their business.
Lall gave a commitment to address these issues, noting that the sale of alcohol should be discontinued forthwith and he mandated the Regional Democratic Council to provide an estimate for the fencing of the entire market complex.
The release said the vendors met with Lall last week after a delegation came to the city.
Of the 25 roadside vendors, 15 have erected stalls in the market which they later abandoned. Efforts are currently being made to accommodate the remaining 10 in the market.
Last Thursday a frustrated group of the roadside vendors numbering fourteen descended on Freedom House, Robb Street to air their concerns. Bejai Nebar, spokesperson for the group, told Stabroek News that “for too long we have had to fight for our daily bread and our families are now being impacted”. He said they were granted permission to sell on the parapets provided they operate from mobile stalls. They have since complied but the fallout with the regional office continues.
Nebar said that while they agree that certain rules must be in place, they are against such rules being to the detriment of hardworking people. He said they turn out early in the mornings to earn a living and they sometimes go late into the nights yet they are being forced out of that living.
“I ain’t know what they want me to do, I have children to mind and they suffering,” a female vendor said. She said they have had numerous discussions with the relevant authorities but somehow a favourable agreement has not been met. According to her, they intend to picket for as long as it takes.
The vendor had explained that they are being pressed to sell inside the market at a location that is not conducive for sales. One man described the spot as “an area behind so many rum shops no one will go there.” He said the parapet has been the best place to do business.
After picketing outside Freedom House for about an hour the vendors were told that someone inside would meet with them. They later dispersed after the meeting but vowed to return if the situation continues.
In 2006 the issue of relocation for the vendors surfaced and several clashes followed. The vendors staged a picket at the International Conference Centre, Liliendaal calling for a change in their Neighbourhood Democratic Council. Then their stalls were dismantled by the regional authorities on several occasions prior to the picket because they refused to relocate inside the market.
Much earlier in 2006 the Parika market vendors had previous issues with the regional administration and those closer to the stelling were asked to move in May. When they did not heed the notice their stalls were destroyed by the council. Vendors were originally asked to move to a site allocated to them at the side of the stelling.
When they cried out against it, a $57M market was set up at Hydronie to accommodate them. Many vendors, a number of them farmers who came to sell their produce on Sundays and Thursdays at Parika, were very unhappy about the second site, saying that it was too far away from the stelling.