THE Bartica Mayor and Town Council has rejected claims by cart vendors who alleged that they are being unfairly treated by the municipality regarding their relocation to ply their trade.

In an article captioned: “Bartica cart vendors allege unfair treatment in movement”, the article highlighted several claims against the council, in terms of where they are allowed to ply their trade and the cost they are required to pay to so do.

An excerpt from the article says the vendors alleged that they are paying $4,000 per week to the town council, while stall owners pay a total of $6,000 per month; and yet they are not allowed to ply their trade freely, but are being moved from place to place.
The vendors voiced complaints about the council wanting them to move from their current selling areas (Third – Seventh Avenue) and go to Fourth Avenue alongside the abattoir – an area the vendors claim “people do not really go to buy greens or so.”

The vendors went on to say that they have no problem with the fact that they are prohibited from selling in First Avenue, as they might pose competition to the stallholders at the Bartica Market, but they need to make a living too. Claims that council has threatened to seize their carts if they do not abide by the new boundaries were also raised by the vendors. One vendor said he had been selling from a cart for 10 years; however, for the past three years he has been experiencing several difficulties. He further highlighted that a lot of his goods are perishable and the constant movement to desolate areas would put him, along with other vendors, at a disadvantage.

Meanwhile, contacted on the issue Town Clerk Phebe Walllerson told the Guyana Chronicle that the council is peeved by the allegations. In fact, she said that offering them the opportunity to ply their trade in the municipality is a privilege, since they are not residents of the town and they put the Barticans who provide the same services at a disadvantage.
She explained that the $4000 weekly is the vendors’ landing, and they harass the staff of the council to pay this fee. The harassment and threats become so serious that there are cases where police intervention was needed, she shared. This $4000 she said, does not even offset the expenses that these vendors cost them.

Wallerson said that the vendors have no regard for the town and its people and they vend wherever they please and leave a lot of mess for the council to clean. “They even vend in front of people’s homes and business places and leave all their unwanted waste for these people to clean,” Wallerson said.

She also made mention of vendors leaving their garbage on the newly constructed boulevard on the beach of the town, which is an environmental concern. “Even on the Boulevard, where we worked so hard to beautify, to offer people a recreational space for their families, these vendors take over and leave their mess for us to clean. Because they are not Barticans, they do not feel that obligation, or see our vision to keeping our town clean,” Wallerson expressed.

The council has since then decided to restrict the cart vendors from selling on First and Second Avenues, from First to Sixth Street, since this covers the town’s market area. In addition, Wallerson said the roads are very narrow and there has been an increase in vehicular traffic over the past few years, and they block the roads when they vend there.
However, the vendors are allowed to vend from Third to Seventh Avenue, First to Sixth Street, which the council says most Barticans live. These regulations were communicated to the vendors and they agreed, but have not been complying, Wallerson said.