Dear Editor,
It has become necessary to address the persistently misleading narrative that the Central Government is willfully withholding resources from the Municipality of the City Council (M&CC), supposedly due to its control by the opposition. This narrative, propagated by some corners of the media, not least by the pundits at Stabroek News, is incorrect and neglects the fundamental issues. Let us be clear: the Central Government harbours no animosity toward the M&CC and would indeed relish the opportunity to work alongside the Council to improve our City. The suggestion that the M&CC is being financially strangled due to political gamesmanship is a baseless and inflammatory accusation.
In reality, the City Council receives substantial yearly revenues generated from taxes and various fees, amounting to billions. However, what is also undeniable is the chronic mismanagement within City Hall. To date, there has been no comprehensive audit for years, and the budget for 2023 was submitted inexplicably late, only in August. The recurring financial scandals are alarming, such as the extravagant expenditure of 3 million dollars monthly on compactor rentals—a staggering 33 million for the year thus far—and a questionable 10 million dollar purchase of a compactor whose functionality remains uncertain. Furthermore, the management of market fee collection is a debacle marked by an utter lack of accountability.
One would have to ask whether Stabroek News has diligently investigated the operations at City Hall. How convinced are they that APNU councillors are genuinely interested in cooperation? Actions speak louder than words, and the refusal to appoint a PPP/C councillor to a position such as vice-chair of the finance committee speaks volumes about the true intentions of the APNU-led City Council. Indeed, Stabroek News values accountability. Have they scrutinised the composition of the Council’s committees? Such an examination would reveal a tale not of inclusive governance but of exclusion and gamesmanship at the hands of the APNU.
Would it then be prudent or justifiable for the Central Government to subsidise such gross mismanagement? Before we entertain notions of resource starvation, perhaps the focus should be directed toward financial stewardship within the M&CC. It is time for rigorous accountability, transparent governance, and a sincere commitment to fiscal responsibility. Only then can we move beyond this unproductive discourse and serve the City’s residents as they rightly deserve.
One would anticipate that outlets like Stabroek News, with their purported dedication to investigative reporting, would pose the necessary hard-hitting questions. For instance, it is baffling why no inquiry has been made into the failure to update the city asset register since 2005. This lapse has left the M&CC blind to the extent and value of its holdings—a staggering oversight for over 18 years. Without a recent and comprehensive forensic audit, it would be highly imprudent for Central Government to allocate taxpayers’ funds to a bottomless pit of administrative incompetence that the M&CC represents. Surely, Stabroek News knows this.
The matter of the 2024 budget further illustrates this systemic disarray. Despite the legal stipulation for the finance committee to have completed this process by November of the previous year, there has been no indication of any progress or commencement of such an essential task. Likewise, the 2023 budget was ratified some ten months after it was legally due. This negligence renders any potential financial support from the Central Government not only baseless but utterly speculative. How can support be quantified without a budget? With no budget established, no audits conducted, and an outdated asset register, the question remains as to how the Central Government is expected to subsidise the M&CC, and if so, to what extent and on what basis?
The absence of any of these documents is a fundamental failure, making it preposterous that Stabroek News has not sought to highlight or even question this lack of basic fiscal governance. The procedure is straightforward according to the Local Government Act: once a budget for the upcoming year is ratified—a process that the finance committee has not even initiated—the M&CC, should it encounter a shortfall in revenues, is expected to apply to the Local Government for a supplementary budget. It is perplexing, to say the least, that Stabroek News has neglected to investigate or even mention such a basic procedural requirement.
Furthermore, the Local Government Act is explicit in its expectation for the City to sustain itself through its own revenue collection mechanisms. Yet, there seems to be a vacuum of initiative from the M&CC to innovate or even explore alternate avenues of revenue generation. The onus is on the City Council to optimise its financial self-sufficiency, not to perpetually lean on the Central Government for bailouts. Meanwhile, our Vice President and His Excellency have not remained idle. They have been directly engaging with councillors and crafting tangible plans to alleviate the immediate concerns of our citizenry—efforts that should have been undertaken by the M&CC.
The citizens cannot wait for essential services while the council dithers. The situation necessitates action, not procrastination, and it is the direct intervention of Central Government that is stepping into the breach left by the M&CC. The financial governance of the M&CC is not just a matter of local administration—it is a broader issue that affects every citizen and taxpayer. Finally, is Stabroek News aware that Ms. Edwana Miller, acting City Treasurer, has retired? Are you aware that the APNU-led Council has yet to appoint even an interim treasurer, which brings the City’s ability to conduct financial transactions to a standstill?
The retirement of Ms. Miller was not an unforeseen event; the Council had ample warning and yet displayed a stark inaction. This paralysis of function within the City’s financial apparatus is yet another blight on the Council’s management—or rather, its mismanagement. Is this the strain of dysfunction Stabroek News believes should be rewarded with taxpayer funds? In their zeal to attack the PPP/C, you seem to have overlooked the essential inquiries, forsaking the due diligence that is the bedrock of journalistic integrity. You must demand answers and hold the City Council accountable for fulfilling its responsibilities. The citizens of our community deserve no less.
Sincerely,
Jainarine Singh, Odayson Ashby, Patricia Chase-Green, Steven Jacobs, Dion Younge, Phagoo Singh, Shazam Isfahani, Jewula Ceasar, Alfonso De Armas, Bisham Bipat, Rudolph Dyal
(PPP/C city councillors)
