ATTORNEY GENERAL Basil Williams has completed his review of the controversial Georgetown parking meter contract, and that is to be presented for Cabinet deliberation next week. Natural Resources Minister Raphael Trotman made this pronouncement to the press corps on Thursday. Despite Cabinet Secretary Joseph Harmon’s indication of government’s interest in the parking meter contract, Georgetown Mayor Patricia Chase-Green has said the project will commence on September 1.
“Cabinet’s commitment was to review the contract and Cabinet will review the contract,” Harmon reminded the press corps some time ago, adding that whatever action City Hall is taking at this moment, “whenever the Attorney General advises Cabinet, Cabinet will take the necessary action.”
The contract had been kept under lock and key by the city administration for fear of the idea being copied. That contention has been debunked as ludicrous by the city administration’s critics.
According to Harmon, if there is any illegality arising from review of the contract, then the city’s administration would become subject to the actions of the state’s authorities.
Immediately following President David Granger’s first visit to City Hall some time ago, the city administration rolled out a model of the proposed parking meter for display in City Hall’s compound.
The city’s Town Clerk, Royston King, who was recently chastised for his involvement in a shady trip to Mexico along with Mayor Chase-Green, was captured using the parking meter.
King accompanied the mayor and two other councillors, Junior Garrett and Oscar Clarke, to Mexico City, Mexico and then to Panama, where the Georgetown delegation met with officials from those countries unbeknownst to the rest of Georgetown’s elected representatives.
The team then made their way to Panama for a similar meeting with Panamanian officials on the parking meters. Revelations of the logistics were made to the Council only while en route to Panama.
Reports from the project implementation team, National Parking Systems (NPS), said the city administration can expect a sizeable increase in their gross income from the project.
The project is expected to generate between $100-200M in the first year of implementation. NPS is slated to administer the project for the next 49 years.