Dear Editor

I REFER to reports in numerous sections of the media that make reference to the reactions of business representative groups, one of the largest and most influential being the Private Sector Commission (PSC).As a specific example of such reports, I refer to an article captioned, ‘Hundreds protest city parking meters,’ (SN, February 4). The article states that business representatives are calling on central government to resolve the dispute. Among other assertions, the PSC – according to the report – states that, ‘The City Council have displayed unmatched arrogance in their refusal to engage businesses in any attempt to compromise.’

For your information, please see the attached document which is self-explanatory. That letter was sent by me on the 10th of January, 2017, to the Chairman of the PSC, and copied to stakeholders and officials. Please note that in the final paragraph of the letter, I had invited feedback from the PSC which to date, has not responded. One may reasonably take such a failure to take advantage of the opportunity afforded by my invitation as a refusal by the PSC to engage the Mayor and City Council (M&CC) of Georgetown, through the Ministry of Communities.

It is therefore, unfair of the PSC to accuse central government or the M&CC of not engaging or consulting the business community, when clearly there is evidence of our efforts to do so. In closing, I wish to make clear that the invitation for dialogue still stands. I believe that such dialogue is likely to be far more fruitful than confrontation, whether in the streets or via the media.

Regards

Ronald Bulkan

Minister of Communities