Suspension order leaves no room for discretion on the part of the City- Minister Bulkan

From today (Wednesday, March 22, 2017), agents of the City Council or Smart City Solutions are no longer allowed to clamp vehicles or implement any other aspect of the Parking Meter Project. Additionally, citizens and their vehicles will be protected by the Guyana Police Force against such actions.

This was made possible via a suspension order issued by the Government on Tuesday (March 21, 2017), after the Council failed to act on the previous order last Friday (March 17, 2017).

According to Minister of Communities, Ronald Bulkan, the new Order is “unambiguous and leaves no room for discretion on the part of the City with regard to conformity.”

The project from today (March 22, 2017), will be suspended for three months.

“This is a done deal,” he said, adding that the Council would be clearly advised to inform Smart City Solutions (SCS) that paid parking would be suspended. The company would then be invited to enter into negotiations, and at that stage, it would be up to SCS to determine what its response to this new action of the Government would be.

The Minister believes that the Council “sought a way to frustrate the decision of the Cabinet.” In this regard, he expressed public dissatisfaction with the action of the Council.

Cabinet at its Tuesday (March 21, 2017) meeting directed Minister Bulkan to formally suspend the operation of the By-laws governing the Parking Meter project with immediate effect.

The Minister of Public Security, Mr. Khemraj Ramjattan was also instructed to advise the Commissioner of Police to ensure that as of Wednesday, March 22, 2017, citizens and their vehicles would receive the protection of the Guyana Police Force (GPF). This will be to prevent them and/or their vehicles from being unduly hindered or restrained in any way, whatsoever, by the GCC and/or its agents.