The Ethnic Relations Com-mission (ERC) says it is not the competent authority to deal with matters of noise nuisance, following what it says are misleading claims in an article published by the Guyana Times.
In a press release the ERC said the paper’s Monday edition, under the caption “Police round up many after Sheriff Street fireworks” gives the impression that it ignored complaints about noise nuisance made in a letter by Pearl Lewis on September 21.
The ERC said following its Complaints Procedure it invited Lewis to attend a meeting and to provide additional information on September 28. It said at the same meeting the woman was informed that since noise nuisance did not fall within its mandate the only resolution it could offer in the matter was Alternative Dispute Resolution and Lewis did not agree to that.
It said too discussions were held with Lewis and the other parties named in her complaint to determine whether dialogue could have resolved the matter and this proved successful “and all parties left describing the deliberations in their own words as `satisfied’” The Commission said it was therefore surprised to read in the Guyana Times that Lewis said nothing was done. It said the claims attributed to Lewis are “reckless and malicious” and aims to bring the ERC into disrepute even after the group stepped out of its mandate in an attempt to broker a solution between the parties.
The ERC therefore wishes to inform the public that it is not a “cure for all” and urges persons not to seek to use its offices for his/her own agenda. Further, it said it operates on 24 functions outlined in Article 212D of the Constitution of Guyana and this does not include dealing with noise nuisance.
