New ‘Markets Committee’ Chairman says…
New Chairman of the Markets’ and Public Health Committee Trichria Richards.
New Chairman of the Markets’ and Public Health Committee Trichria Richards.

– Street vending policy foremost on agenda

HAVING been appointed the new chairman of the Markets and Public Health Committee, Councillor Trichria Richards has said foremost on her agenda is the crafting of the street vending policy that has been in the making for more than two years now.

She told Guyana Chronicle on Monday that she is hoping to have the policy completed and placed before the City Council by the first statutory meeting in September.

The ‘Markets Committee’ usually meets once a month but Richards is also hoping to be able to meet more often with the members.

She offered that a two-week consultation process is planned so that the committee can obtain feedback from vendors, the private sector and others who may be affected by the policy.

Just recently, Georgetown Mayor Patricia Chase-Green asked that the street vending policy be a matter for discussion at every statutory meeting until it is completed. “We are in July and already, seasonal vendors are taking to the streets. We need that policy. It must always be on the agenda,” she said.

Richards responded that the policy will be discussed at the next committee meeting and that a series of consultations are planned.

More than two years have passed with the administrative arm of the Mayor and City Council (M&CC) waiting on the Committee for a policy.

Town Clerk Royston King had lamented that while the committee failed to put forward a policy with suggestions for relocating vendors to facilitate certain projects, the administration was being severely criticised each time it took a decision.

“It is not easy at all to do a policy document,” former Deputy Mayor and Chairman of the said committee Lionel Jaikarran had said. While the committee benefitted from a policy outlined by Chase-Green, Jaikarran suggested that it was a lack of cooperation from the Town Clerk which was holding up the process of relocating vendors so that the Stabroek Market wharf can be repaired.

But King pointed out that the street vending policy is not to be confused with the repairs of the Stabroek Wharf. Jaikarran said the Town Clerk should have cooperated some more with the committee to identify available spots for the relocation.

“We shouldn’t shift our responsibilities. It is the duty and responsibility of the committee to walk through the streets and identify such spots. It is not fair to throw it on the administration,” responded the Mayor.

King said there are several activities which hinge on the creation of the street vending policy. He observed that while there has been no vending at the Stabroek Market Square, there has been a ‘slow but steady’ increase of vendors on the parameters of the 1763 Monument, popularly known as the Cuffy monument.

Councillor Welton Clarke suggested that the committee should be more effective and equipped with people who have ability, capacity and a willingness to work.

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