EVEN as Linden Town Week 2020 has been launched, in celebration of the town’s 50th anniversary, members of the Linden Town Week (LTW) 2019 secretariat, are crying foul since they have not received a single payment from the Linden Mayor and Town Council (LMTC), for their services rendered in the execution of the calendar of events that occurred in April -May, 2019.

The frustrated members, in presenting their case to this publication, are calling on the LMTC to hold its end of the bargain and make the payments, since they would have worked tirelessly for months to ensure LTW was pulled off. “It has been six months now and we have not been paid a single cent for our services, none of the members of the secretariat hired by the Council have been paid; it is very frustrating, people have their families to feed, people have responsibilities and we need our money,” one member said.
Those who are owed payments include the Coordinator of Linden Town Week 2019, Norvell Fredericks and ten other members who were responsible for entertainment, tourism, sport, education, and health events and many more. “They would have launched Linden Town Week 2020 and they didn’t even invite the 2019 secretariat to let them know what is the status or anything, I find it very disrespectful.

“For months we worked tirelessly; we were the ones who brought in the money for Linden Town Week 2019 from sponsors and we are the ones left without a cent. We neglected our family for months to organize this thing, day in, day out and we have not been paid and we are calling on the Council to honour its obligation, because the next step is to protest for what is rightfully ours and to call on Linden to boycott Linden Town Week 2020,” another member of the secretariat said.

In a letter dated September 20th 2019, Town Clerk (ag), Orleena Obermuller, wrote to the members, thanking them for their services and explained that the Council was unable to make the payment because of monies owed by promoters. On Wednesday, Mayor of Linden, Waneka Arrindell, stated that there were outstanding monies not only for the members of the secretariat but for other persons in Linden who would have provided some form of service. She said it was the understanding that once all expenses were paid off, the secretariat would be the last to be paid. “We do have outstanding monies, it was the understanding that once we would have covered all expenses, the secretariat would be paid and we are waiting on the monies to do so,” she said.

Coordinator of the Secretariat and Chairman of the Municipality’s Social Development Committee, Norvell Fredericks related that the Council is awaiting payment of substantial sums from two promoters and efforts are being made to receive that money. While he agreed that the process to do so might be a bit slothful since meetings with these promoters are being cancelled ever so often, Fredericks said it would not be prudent to use the same promoters for the upcoming LTW as these would not have honoured their contract. One of the promoters, he said, was under legal obligation to pay and there may be reason to seek legal action against that company.

Meanwhile, the members of the Secretariat are claiming that they did not sign any contract with the understanding that they will only be paid, on the basis of payment being received from promoters. “So it is a case of if the promoters never pay that our months of service will go down the drain, the Council cannot hire people and not have a plan B in place for their payment. If the promoters fall short, then the Council has to step up and make that payment,” the members reasoned.

Mayor Arrindell said that the members are aware of Council’s present financial situation. LMTC is currently cash strapped with millions of dollars in debt and on a monthly basis, only rakes in enough to clear expenses. LTW 2020 has been launched under the theme, ‘fifty 4 fifty’, in celebration of Linden’s 50th anniversary. The 17 days of celebration is expected to have on its calendar 50 activities to mark the jubilee observance. Tourism, culture and history are expected to be showcased at the event. There is presently an ongoing logo competition, where the winner will receive $50, 000 for designing the official logo that will be used.