With the annual National Toshaos’ Council (NTC) conference scheduled to begin on Monday, the newly-elected leaders of several Community Development Councils (CDCs) in Region One are being prevented from attending as a result of a dispute over the validity of their elections.
In an interview with Stabroek News on Wednesday, Regional Chairman Brentnol Ashley said the issue was brought to his attention after a list containing the names of the previous leaders was submitted to the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs (MoIPA) to attend the conference in Georgetown.
The issue, he contended, comes as a result of claims made by the Regional Executive Officer (REO) Leslie Wilburg that the election process used to elect the leaders was invalid. Attempts to contact the REO for a comment proved futile.