WHEN the statutory meeting of the Mayor and City Council (M&CC) was convened on Monday just after 14:00 hrs, roughly half of the total number of city councillors were absent, prompting some to joke that the reason was that yesterday was not pay day.

While excuses were received from about five councillors, nothing could be announced about the rest who failed to show up. And although a few others walked in late, at least one of them could be seen leaving around 15:30 hrs.

Some of these men and women who are tasked with making important decisions regarding the City, were chided by Mayor Patricia Chase-Green for what she described as their lackadaisical attitude towards attending scheduled meetings of the various committees on which they sit.      In fact, Chase-Green made a call for all those who treat such meetings in a sloppy fashion to make it known to the administration if they can no longer serve on the committees, in view of the weighty responsibilities that have been entrusted to them.

The mayor pointed out that certain matters cannot be dealt with only at the statutory meetings of the council. “You ought to be committed to those meetings. I expect that this Markets and Public Health Committee will be very serious in the way forward. Another committee that has not been meeting if the Chairman is not present, is the City Works Committee.

“If there is no Chairman, the Vice Chairman, if there is no Vice Chairman, among yourselves as long as you have a quorum, you can choose someone to sit in the chair and conduct those meetings. The City Council cannot be at a standstill for the want of a Chairman not attending the meeting. Please let us be serious as we sit around this table and take up responsibility as Chairmen and Vice Chairpersons.”

Just last June, the mayor lamented the “lackadaisical” attitude with which the Markets’ Public Health Committee is approaching the relocation of Stabroek Market vendors to facilitate repairs to the wharf. “I am not hearing from the [committee] and I hope that we can start consultations with those persons, so that they will be able to give us ideas of where they can be relocated while the wharf is being constructed,” she said.

Yesterday, the Mayor noted that there are only a few months remaining in this year and that the Committee could not just rush to relocate the vendors in one week. “We have to be very vigilant and very alert and, ensure that that market rehabilitation is not [prolonged] because of the lackadaisical way in which we approach the relocation of vendors,” said Chase-Green last June.