–at Monday’s statutory meeting

A NO-confidence Motion, tabled by Councillor Ranwell Jordan, seconded by Councillor Eon Andrews, and supported by most City Councillors was passed against Acting Town Clerk Carol Sooba at Monday’s statutory meeting held in the Chambers of City Hall.

The Motion read: “WHEREAS the Mayor and Councillors of the City of Georgetown is constituted the Legal Municipality responsible for the Officers of the Georgetown Municipality, which means it is the Local Government Authority.

“WHEREAS as a Local Government Authority the Mayor and Councillors of the City of Georgetown as a body holds the power to govern its local authority area, under the Municipal and District Councils Act, Chapter 28:01.

“WHEREAS the High Court has ruled on the 10th April, 2014 that the appointment of Ms. Carol Ryan Sooba as the Town Clerk of the City of Georgetown by the Minister of Local Government and Regional Development was unlawful.

“Also that the appointment by the Minister of Local Government and Regional Development be quashed since he does not have such powers under the Municipal and District Councils Act, Chapter 28:01.

“And Whereas Ms. Carol Ryan Sooba unlawfully instructed the City Treasurer, Mr. Ron Mc Calmon to waive, as he did, twenty-seven million dollars ($27,000,000.00) in rates for Ganga Prasad and Sons Limited for property at, Lot 162 Charlotte and Wellington Streets.

“AND WHEREAS this act by Ms. Carol Ryan Sooba constitutes a fraud against the council and by extension the Citizens of Georgetown.

“BE IT RESOLVED that this council has no confidence in Ms. Carol Ryan Sooba.

“BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this Council instructs Ms. Carol Ryan Sooba to proceed on her vacation leave with immediate effect to facilitate an investigation in the matter by the Guyana Police Force.

The Acting Town Clerk, however, rebuffed these allegations, noting the grounds for the tax waivers were justifiable and, as such, they cannot be deemed as illegal or unlawful.

She further explained that the Council does not have the power to remove her as acting Town Clerk through the mechanism of a no-confidence motion, which was supported by some 15 councillors and disapproved by five.

However, according to the Municipal and District Councils Act, Chapter 28:01 Section 119 (1): “The power to appoint a chief executive officer or persons to hold or act in any local government offices the emoluments of which do not exceed 18 thousand dollars per annum (including the power to confirm appointments), the power to exercise disciplinary control over any persons holding or acting in such offices, and the power to remove any such persons from office shall vest in the council of which such person is to be appointed or in which he holds office and, in the case of the appointment of a chief executive officer, be subject to the approval of the Minister.”

Sooba is contending that the value of the eighteen thousand dollars as cited in Section 119 (1) of Chapter 28:01 does not equate to her current salary, and as such, the law, which had not been amended to suit the current value of the Guyanese Dollars, is not applicable.

The acting Town Clerk also related that this was not the first instance in which a no-confidence motion was passed against her, and she said she is not surprised by this move by the majority of the councillors.
Rising to contribute to the motion was PPP Councillor Victor Sobers, who advised the Council that the decision to remove Sooba was one which would not be deemed legal. He explained that, just recently, High Court judge Justice Brassington Reynolds withheld his ruling on whether Carol Sooba would remain in the public office of City Secretary after she had been challenged by Public Relations Officer Royston King, who sought to be Town Clerk earlier this year.

The court decided that since there are other related legal matters involving the said parties in the Appeals Court, the outcome of the other matters should be awaited.
As such, Sobers emphasized, the Council should not be swift to make decisions such as the one they made yesterday, and should await the ruling on issues regarding the Town Clerk’s post that are currently before the court.

(By Ravin Singh)