United States lawyers preparing Guyana’s defence for arbitration in the case brought by Smart City Solutions (SCS) over the termination of the parking meter contract were here last week to interview potential witnesses, according to a press release from Attorney General Anil Nandlall. The lawyers, from the US firm Foley Hoag, also had a meeting with Nandlall on Thursday, at the Attorney General’s Chambers.
SCS had brought a US$100 million lawsuit against the Government of Guyana when the project, which the Georgetown Mayor and City Council (M&CC) failed in its attempt to implement across the city back in 2016, was terminated.
“The lawyers were in Guyana to interview potential witnesses for the legal proceedings. In this regard, many persons who played a relevant role in the transaction were interviewed. The legal proceedings are continuing,” the release said.
The case is being arbitrated in the US at the International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) based in Washington DC.
In January last year, when he went to the National Assembly to ask for $100 million in supplementary provisions for his ministry, Nandlall had announced that taxpayers would have to foot the US$3 million legal fees for this country’s representation.
Initial implementation of the parking meters was followed by months of controversy which roiled the council with the deal championed by then Georgetown Mayor Patricia Chase-Green and then Town Clerk Royston King.
After protests and a widespread boycott of the parking meters, specifically against the fees which were seen by many as exorbitant, the then Ministry of Communities had put the project on hold to permit the city to undertake wider consultations.
During this period, a number of amendments were made to the deal, and then subject minister Ronald Bulkan approved by-laws for metered parking in the city.
The Supreme Court, however, later quashed Bulkan’s approval, finding that he failed to follow the procedure mandated by the Municipal and District Councils Act for bringing the by-laws into force.
Then in opposition, the PPP/C had said it would not support the parking meter project under the contract M&CC signed with SCS. Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo at the time had said he believed the contract to be flawed.
The stance of the APNU+AFC government was that it would not act against the M&CC in its implementation of the project. Then minister of state Joseph Harmon had said further that the government was also not prepared to act against the council for the by-laws it passed.
In a hands-off approach, he had said that the government was committed to allowing the M&CC to govern unhindered. The city and APNU+AFC had been flayed for pursuing the parking meters deal.
