-insists full council discusses project
Deputy Mayor of Georgetown Sherod Duncan yesterday maintained that the controversial parking meters project should be taken to the full council for approval and he said he will be seeking legal advice on the way forward.
Amid a raging row over a shadowy deal for the US$10m parking meters project, Duncan also expressed consternation over the reported 49-year duration of the deal and the quality of the negotiating that went into it.
Just three months after historic local government elections, the deal which was secretly struck last November has created a divide in the council and particularly among the APNU+AFC councillors. Both Duncan and Mayor Patricia Chase-Green are councillors for APNU+AFC but they have taken diametrically opposed views to the deal.
Speaking to Stabroek News in his office at City Hall yesterday, Duncan reiterated that too little is known about the two companies involved in the project, National Parking System (NPS) and Smart Cities Solutions (SCS), for the council to make a decision in giving them a “monopoly” over parking in Georgetown.
“If you are a major company operating in South America you must have some reference on the internet, even if you don’t have a website, then cities you have put down parking meters (in) would’ve carried stories about you,” Duncan said, adding that when research was done on the two companies, nothing came up.
“…So it’s strange that in this day and age a huge company that operates in South America, according to the persons who are pushing this deal, would have no reference whatsoever on the internet, whether as a company producing parking meters or as a company installing parking meters,” Duncan added.
Referencing the recent trip to Mexico and Panama by Mayor Chase-Green, Town Clerk Royston King, and Councillors Oscar Clarke and Junior Garrett, Duncan said that it was strange that while the four were in the two countries they did not seek testimonials from municipal officials on the parking meters.
“If I am doing due diligence in such a matter I would ask the Mayor of Panama (City), who I am sure would’ve engaged these companies in the laying down of parking meters in his own city. I would’ve asked if he would recommend them because we are about to enter into a multimillion dollar contract for 49 years,” Duncan said, stating that nowhere in any of the releases by the council or information reaching him was it stated that the group from Guyana had visited or sought the assistance of any of the city’s officials.
Duncan said that if the two companies had gotten an endorsement from either of the cities’ officials then it would’ve “gone miles” in supporting their claims and would’ve made their portfolio more believable.
Vet
Duncan highlighted the issue of the contract not being available for other members of the council to scrutinise and stated that any decision that has to be made on behalf of the council should be made by the council itself and not just four persons.
“The fact that we were not allowed to go through the contract, whether to vet it or to give our support to it is not something that we take lightly. The council is the decision making body of the municipality, not the mayor, not Oscar Clarke, not Junior Garrett and not the Town Clerk, the entire council and to circumvent that is a very, very strange action,” Duncan declared, reiterating that when he along with other councillors attempted to view the contract, they were told that it was locked in the Town Clerk’s office. “This is not how the business of the council is managed. Not through the Town Clerk’s office,” he said, stating that the contract should be laid out before the entire council.
Citing the Municipal and District Councils Act (Chapter 28:01), Duncan declared that regardless of the situation a council must function with no less than 25 persons.
“It is clear, so four is not the council and the council is not four and so it must be allowed to function efficiently and effectively as it concerns the policy of the municipality,” he said, declaring that the council needs to be given “breathing space”.
He charged that since its tenure began following local government elections in March the council has not embarked on any new issues and has only focused on ones that concerned the old council.
“This council must be given space to function as a council and not be hijacked by any group of individuals,” he stated, highlighting that there is a need for a vision by the council and while they are a young council, they are in the process of finding their footing and voice and learning about each other.
However, Duncan said that the split between the councillors is how the city council should work.
“It’s 30 persons from 15 different constituencies who can look at issues from different perspectives and bring their different opinions. I think we are going to gel over time but the anatomy of the council is such as it is that we don’t have to all agree. All we need is 16 persons who can agree on a matter for it to pass,” he said, reiterating that any matter should be discussed with the full council.
While the details about the contract have not been announced publicly, Chairman of NPS, Ifa Kamau Cush had stated that the city would gain 20% of the annual revenue gathered by the parking meters. Duncan yesterday expressed his disagreement with the figure.
“We stand to gain 20% from the contract and the company 80% yet the company has had one press conference in all this uproar. Where are they? Why aren’t they representing their own interest in this matter when they stand to gain the most?” he questioned, stating that even if the project goes through, as it seems for now, he does not think that 20% is fair for the council.
When asked what would have been a better figure for the council, Duncan said he could not say since he has not been able to see the entire document and figures but said he is still adamant that he would like to see a democratic and transparent system where the matter can be opened to proposals from different entities.
“…From bids and proposals through a tender board that we have or are supposed to have and for there to be transparency in how we go about engaging companies in the municipality,” he said. He added that information on how the 20% was settled on should be made clear to the public.
Prime real estate
“I think we could’ve negotiated for more. I think we have prime real estate in the city and this is not somewhere else, this is the capital city and there are about 3,000-4,000 parking spots and I think we could’ve negotiated for much more than that,” he said, highlighting the 49 years that the companies have been contracted for.
Duncan explained that the 49 years would give the two companies a monopoly over the parking in the city and should not be allowed.
“Are we entering into a similar contract like GTT for a monopoly just for 20%? 10 years from now we don’t know where our dollar will be in terms of the value and $200M might mean nothing in 20 years. What I find even stranger is that over 49 years that 20% will never go up and even after then we will still not own the meters and I can’t see that as a good agreement,” Duncan said, explaining that while the city is not investing “liquid money” they are making investments in real estate, prime real estate.
“I heard our constable officers will be offered a stipend to monitor the parking meters and that is also an investment in labour. We train those people and that comes at a cost from us and the government so not because we aren’t giving liquid cash means we aren’t making an investment in this project,” Duncan highlighted.
Referencing the $2B that NPS/SCS say will be invested in the parking meter project, Duncan cited Astrolobe, the other company that was in contention for the parking meter contract, which had a $70M startup cost. “I am not for one or the next,” he said, stating that he would’ve loved if Astrolobe was given the same opportunities to engage the entire council that NPS/SCS was given.
Commenting on the last press conference that was held after Chase-Green, Clarke, Garrett and King returned from their trip to Mexico and Panama and announced that they would still be going ahead with NPS/SCS, Duncan said that the forum could’ve been handled better.
“I think that we are stewards of the resources of the people of Georgetown who put us here to represent their needs and their interests and a lot of people of Georgetown have a lot of concerns about this project especially the way it has been rolled out which seems very, very shady,” he said, stating that he doesn’t think the way the press conference was handled with people saying “that they have no apologies to make and they going forward without respect to the outcry of the citizens … would endear us to the citizens of Georgetown,” which he said was his main concern. He noted that the main issue was the tone and that since there was a change in administration, persons voted for a change, even at the local government level, and they have to conduct themselves differently.
When asked what his next step would be, Duncan said that he is currently weighing his options and is receiving advice from several persons. “My background is law and so my first reference is what does the law say in this and so I am receiving legal advice,” he said.
Asked about the possibility of filing a motion at council, Duncan said that he does not know how effective motions and no-confidence motions have been in the past and even if it were to be filed it would have to go through the Town Clerk’s office.
“So they have to get on the agenda and it’s the same people you have a problem with. I am just weighing my options and meeting with different folks and trying to decide where we can go from here,” he said, pointing out that he will make a decision before the first statutory meeting next month.
It has not only been Duncan who has voiced his distress over the parking meters fiasco. Other councillors have also been asking questions. Speaking to Stabroek News yesterday Lionel Jaikarran of APNU+AFC reiterated the sentiments of the deputy mayor and explained that he is not opposing the project but the way it was done.
“It’s three of us taking the strain and we are the ones that decided the status quo can’t work anymore. We haven’t seen the contract as yet and what we read in the press about the 20% is ridiculous plus 49 years? My children might be dead by then and it’s absolutely ridiculous,” he said, questioning the secrecy that seems to be surrounding the contract. He said they had requested it at the last statutory meeting but could not get their hands on it.
“I think it is totally ridiculous. The way the world is working right now is more on telephone-based apps and more on technology. I think the technological part of it where you go into your phone and do everything through your phone is what is the thing right now and I don’t see the need for this huge physical investment in physical machines,” he said. “A lot of people are saying it’s a showdown between the fantastic four and the three musketeers,” he added, stating while only a few have voiced their opinions on the matter, many others agree with their stance but are afraid to show their support.
Duncan also expressed his willingness to see such technology be applied to the parking system. “When I did my research I saw that the technology is moving slowly away from the meters to the phone which means less start up and less manpower but we wouldn’t know what the best system is until we are able to open up the process and see what is out there,” he said.
When Stabroek News had spoken to Astrolobe’s CEO Saratu Phillips a few weeks back, he had explained that his proposal to the council was developing an application that could be used via smart phones where users would be able to purchase time for parking without the need for physical meters. However, Jaikarran and Duncan said that they were unaware that such a proposal was made to the council.
Benschop for Mayor Representative on the council Salima Bacchus-Hinds said that she is standing with anyone that is opposing the meters. She explained that she was also against the way it was being dealt with and the next step was in the hands of the council. One of Team Legacy’s representative on the council, Malcom Ferreira expressed similar sentiments and explained that since he was not privy to the contract he is not in a position to support it. “But I can’t support something I don’t know about and you can’t ask someone to come on board for something they have no real information about,” he said.
The 30-member council is made up of 25 APNU+AFC councillors, two from the PPP/C, two from Team Legacy and one from Benschop for Mayor.
