Pressure group wants Royston King removed from City Hall

By Devina Samaroo

The pressure group that forced the Georgetown Mayor and City Council (M&CC) to abandon the controversial parking meters project has mobilised another protest, this time calling for the removal of Town Clerk Royston King.

Since late last year, two individuals have been religiously protesting outside City Hall, calling for King to be removed over his continued failure to transparently execute the functions of his office as the city’s administrator. The Movement Against Parking Meter (MAPM) has decided to join their cause and lend their support in a silent protest organised for tomorrow from 12:00hrs to 13:00hrs outside City Hall.

The protest will take place just a few hours before the M&CC votes for a new Mayor and Deputy Mayor.

Don Singh, a representative of the movement told News Room during an interview with News Room today said that “after Monday’s insanity, the group came alive and everybody was like “no this cannot go on, MAPM has to do something.”

The insanity to which he refers was the circumstances which led to the decision by Mayor Patricia Chase-Greene to throw out a no-confidence motion that was brought by Councillor Sherod Duncan against the Town Clerk. The event unfolded at the M&CC’s statutory meeting on Monday.

Singh said the movement will rally against all forms of mismanagement and unprofessionalism at the City Council.

“We’re just doing our civic duty. This has nothing to do with race, class, colour, creed, political party, nothing, this is just citizens of Georgetown saying, this guy, Royston King was hired to do a job and he is doing a very bad job and we say he should be fired,” Singh posited.

King is accused of unilaterally making decisions without the full council’s approval. Some of the issues include the parking meter contract, the removal of vendors from Stabroek Market and Robb Street, and the implementation of a container fee.

The issues also include the failure of the Town Clerk to account for funds it received from Central Government and the wanton abuse of the emergency clause in order to bypass the tendering process.