Region Four Chairman Clement Corlette says he has no intention of emulating the Mayor and City Council (M&CC) though he thinks engaging the council would set the best possible standard in the region.
The chairman made these comments in response to a statement issued by the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) accusing him of attempting to adopt this model. According to the statement, Corlette was “absolutely convinced” that Mayor Hamilton Green was successful in his management of the city and he had arranged a study tour to examine the systems of the council. It then went on to question the chairman’s judgement and his suitability for the post he holds.
The PPP/C said Corlette, in a statement to Green dated October 18, said, “This missive serves to inform you of my interest in the good work of you and your council in efforts to marshal your resources towards the enhancement of the environment within Georgetown and management of all aspects of the city laws, by laws and regulations.” The party said this excerpt is “most outrageous and incomprehensible” and pointed out that the M&CC has been criticized for mismanagement and poor financial administration that frequently brings the provision of basic services to citizens of Georgetown to a standstill. It added that one such situation was seen as recent as two weeks ago.
The party also lambasted Green’s leadership calling it one “characterized by conflicts and failures.” It said the mayor’s leadership does not provide a model for efficient and effective management for a local democratic organ. To this end, it said that Corlette’s “fixation with Green’s management” could lead the administration of the region to similar crises.
When this newspaper contacted Corlette for a comment on the party’s assertions, he was not aware of the statement. The chairman then said he was surprised that such comments could come from councillors, as the statement indicated, and that he was amazed that councillors would release a statement under a party. “We view the region as made up of councillors and not PPP and PNC councillors, so I object to them writing as PPP councillors,” Corlette said, pointing out that the councillors would have written as councillors of the region.
He told Stabroek News that he did not arbitrarily decide to send the letter to the mayor but this was done after he consulted with Vice Chairman Mohammed Khan. He also said he had suggested to Khan that it would have been a good idea to engage and work together with Georgetown since it is, after all, a part of the region.
Corlette said Khan agreed with him and the letter that was despatched to Green was copied to him (Khan) and Regional Executive Officer Shafdar Ali as well as his deputy, Local Government Minister Kellawan Lall and Town Clerk Beulah Williams.
Corlette said the letter was straightforward and simple and just like the region has a good relationship with the other regions, he intended that the region’s relationship with Georgetown be the same. Also, in the light of the ongoing review of the local government system, Corlette said this and many accompanying areas were of interest to the council.
Fostering a good relationship with Georgetown, Corlette said, would also benefit the region in certain areas, for example, when the regional administration found itself in a jam following a request from the Cane Grove Neighbourhood Democratic Council for an upgrade on the dam there. “After two months we cannot respond to them because we have don’t have the machinery and I have made a request from the Ministry of Agriculture. I asked Transport Minister Robeson Benn and we asked for supplementary and we can’t get that either so in shortfalls like these we could always ask for assistance,” Corlette said.
It was only last month, in an interview with this newspaper, that Corlette described the administration which has the two major parties sharing the two top spots as “a very good marriage.” Observers believe that the council’s administration would provide a test of the political environment as the PNCR and the PPP/C hold the chairman and vice-chairman posts.
Asked to give a fair analysis of the relations during that interview he had said “honestly this has been a very good marriage
