Dear Editor,
PLEASE refer to a letter which appeared in your newspaper on Monday, December 18, 2017 titled “City Hall is a special place.” by Shanta Singh.

The Mayor and City Council wishes to thank Ms. Singh for the interest she has shown in the work of its various agencies, in particular, the City Constabulary. It should be noted that this particular writer appears to see the Council only in a negative light. This is demonstrated by the pattern and contents of previous letters written by her in our dailies. Suffice it to say, we are not worried with this negative perspective by Ms. Shanta Singh, but we continue to ask that those who write on matters affecting the council and consequently the city, to be fair, truthful and objective in their writings. Of course, if writers have their own hidden agendas, then this would be difficult to achieve.

In this particular letter, the writer seems to be in possession of information that is not within the archives of the Council when she stated: “In the past there have been disappearances of large quantities of ammunition…” Paragraph 4. We are not aware that this has ever happened at the City Council. However, we would be happy to peruse any information or informational materials the writer may have in this regard. We have always admitted that the Constabulary, just like every other police and security agency, has its challenges. That notwithstanding, it is well known that the Council has put in place systems to manage and monitor the movement and use of all its properties, including weapons and allied security equipment.

In the case of the Constabulary, there are systems in place to track the use of all of its properties including firearms, communication sets and vehicles. In fact, the discovery of the missing firearm testifies to the effectiveness of those systems. Therefore, we disagree with comments made by Shanta Singh at Paragraph 5 to the effect that: “…This points to gross negligence, sloppy management and extreme dishonesty and the buck must stop at the political and administrative leadership of the Council …” We are afraid that the writer appears to be totally uninformed and as a result her utterances are unfair, not only to the leadership of the Council, but also the entire city of Georgetown.

We wish to reaffirm our commitment to securing the health, the safety and the protection of local communities and their citizens. We continue to demonstrate the credentials and responsibility to manage all of our statutory duties and obligations to the city.
Regards
Royston King
Town Clerk
City of Georgetown