THE Mayor and City Council (M&CC) is, again, unable to pay salaries on time this month and Town Clerk, Yonnette Pluck said, Monday, that no definite date, as to when payment could be effected, can be given at this point. She spoke about the problem when addressing the fortnightly statutory meeting, presided over by Deputy Mayor, Patricia Chase-Green, at City Hall.
Pluck ventured to say that Mayor Hamilton Green is out of the country indefinitely, as he did not state for how long he would be away.
On the salaries issue, the Town Clerk informed that, based on the information she received from the Treasurer’s Department, no monies would be available before the end of May but, while no definite date could be set, feverish efforts will be made to have workers paid early June.
It was the same situation in April when outstanding debts owed by the Municipality to the National Insurance Scheme (NIS) and Pay As You Earn (PAYE) taxes jeopardised the salaries of the workers.
The M&CC owes a total of $115M to the two entities and claims it is paying some each month and Pluck had reported that salaries for April could not be paid unless that outstanding indebtedness was met.
At a statutory meeting in April, she had informed councillors that workers have been writing to voice their concerns to the Administration over the NIS/PAYE issues and Mayor Green, acknowledging that it was no new matter, proceeded with the agenda.
Meanwhile, City Treasurer, Andrew Meredith told the Guyana Chronicle that the delay in salaries payment for April was due to the Council having paid those debts.