The announcement by the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development that it will work

collaboratively with other government ministries to aid City Hall with garbage disposal is most welcome and perhaps overdue because over the years the latter has clearly demonstrated an increasing inability to deal with the city’s garbage situation, in fact, to effectively manage and administer the affairs of Georgetown.
The Burrowes Commission of Inquiry into the affairs of City Hall brought out vividly the poor state of the management and Administration of almost every department of City Hall. Poor management and accountability of funds were among the several troubled areas identified by that Inquiry.
The other ministries being engaged are Agriculture, Health, Public Works, and Tourism, Minister within the Ministry of Local Government, Mr. Norman Whittaker, told a recent press conference.
“We at the Ministry have been taking our own initiatives to bring about an improved service. Quite recently, we have again engaged a number of sector ministries with a view to arriving at several decisions,” he said.
One decision has to do with identifying the areas where there are huge piles of garbage; another has to do with the measures the ministry will take to address the issue; and the third has to do with which of the ministries will take up the responsibility of bringing about the delivery of these services.
Over the years we have seen, apart from the garbage woes, the Le Repentir Cemetery turned into a virtual jungle; infrastructure continuously deteriorating, illegal vending spring up everywhere and a poor quality of service being delivered to the residents of Georgetown.
Some have bee erroneously contending that the government has not been providing help to City, but they seem to conveniently forget that one of its first acts when it came to office in 1992 was the repairing of several major roads in Georgetown including Main Street, Regent Street, Robb Street, which were all in a miserable state engulfed by pot holes. More recently, the government rebuilt Pollydore Street, which was a mud dam, upgraded to a fully asphalted thoroughfare.
The government has also helped with drainage in the city by providing pumps and other technical support.
One of the arguments being put forward by the Mayor of Georgetown is that City Hall needs to diversify its base of obtaining finance. This argument may have some degree of merit but City Hall needs to first address its poor collection of rates and taxes which are far below acceptable levels. And receiving more money will not necessarily result in improved service delivery by City Hall with the current state of its management and administration.
At the moment, the government has no alternative other than assuming greater control of the reins of City Hall to avoid further suffering to the residents of Georgetown.