Dear Editor,
Reports in the Kaieteur News ()KN) and Stabroek News (SN) on Thursday, April 27th, 2017 referred to the holding of an Extra-Ordinary (KN)/Special Statutory (SN) meeting of the Georgetown City Council on Tuesday, 26th April 2017 when a Committee of seven councillors was appointed to represent the Council at the discussions to renegotiate the parking meter contract with SCSL. This committee of negotiators is to be led by Coun-cillor Malcolm Ferreira with Councillor Noelle Chow Chee as the Vice Chair.
At the outset I want to congratulate the four persons who negotiated the original contract for recusing themselves in this phase of the negotiations. That is the way to go. I hope there will be no attempt by them, working behind the scenes, to influence the final outcome of the negotiations.
I also want to place on record at least three concerns which I have about the composition of the team in the new round of discussions. The first is about the mandate of the negotiating team. It is normal to expect that such a team will have a mandate that represents the consensus of the Council. Council may not wish to say publicly what is the mandate of the council, but has the team been given one or has it got to find its own way during the discussions? Second, because members of the negotiating team either supported or condemned the original contract when it was placed before the Council for ratification, do they have the ability to rise above the limitations of their contributions in the Council and unite to arrive at a decision which advances the interests of the citizens of Georgetown and by extension Guyana, while protecting the national patrimony.
Third, the absence of a skilled, highly qualified legal mind on the team who will be able to combat the expertise which SCSL will bring to the negotiations, is worrying. I strongly believe that one of the mistakes made by those who negotiated the original contract with SCSL was that they did not avail themselves of the services of an accomplished legal mind to counter the legal expertise SCSL had at its disposal. It is foolhardy to believe that SCSL did not make use of legal minds when it conceived the first contract. It is even more foolhardy to believe that in this new dispensation, they will not bring to the table persons with the requisite legal skills to help them maintain the hold they have over the Council by the time the negotiations will have concluded. The Council may argue that in the person of Councillor Carlyle Goring it has someone who has some legal training. The question however is – does he possess the expertise and knowledge of the law to meaningfully assist the Council in achieving the kind of contract that we all will have confidence in?
The Council must give the impression that it is taking the negotiations seriously and, I am sorry to say, that at this point in time it is not conveying that impression.
I wish to conclude by saying to the Mayor and Councillors of the City of Georgetown – do not repeat the mistakes of the past. Appoint a negotiating team that is capable of doing justice to the expectations of all Guyanese. The team announced by Council on Wednesday, April 26th, 2017 is one which I have no confidence in.
Yours faithfully,
Desmond Trotman
