THIS attitude of people building ugly, dilapidated, and disgraceful structures must stop.  The City Hall or Public Works Ministry must demolish them quickly before it becomes an addiction.  For when action is taken, the perpetrators will cry foul, and accuse the ministry or City Hall of affecting a decent living, which to me is very indecent. 

The authorities must move quickly, and they must have patrol officers looking out for such structures and taking the appropriate action.  Most of these people are lazy and do not like to work, so they seek no employment and use this method to acquire a living.

I am speaking of a location near David and Queen Sts, near Prince Edward Sreet.  The authorities cannot miss this ugly and unlawful structure.  One side is a decent, small parlour which is authorised; on the other is another which is legal.  This is unfair, and they can sell cheaper because they pay no taxes, collect no VAT and answer to no one, and there is no respect for the law.

So many like these do not even have a pleasant structure which could be collapsed.  As if we live in a land of the dread, or the dead or the zombies, they use ugly old pieces of wood and old tarpaulin, and then they move in large old refrigerators, as if they have a licensed parlour.  Then they start to put table and chairs, and even cook there.

All these things make us look like a backward country without laws and by-laws where anyone can do anything, play any music regardless of its level and lewdness.  These people do not even think of knocking down the structures when finished, so it becomes permanent.

To make matters worse, they usually open next to licensed businesses which pay taxes, collect VAT, pay NIS and adhere to government and city laws, creating unfair competition.

Such must be stopped, and the minister needs to act if the City Council is incompetent as they usually are.  If someone repairs a fence the city inspectors see and make threats and stop work, but those who put up permanent structures which bring disgrace to Georgetown are allowed in so many places.  Shame on you Georgetown City Management!

Unless the government and City Hall wish for Guyana to look like a real fourth world shantytown, they must act and clean all such structures from the face of Georgetown, and quickly.