-urges businesses to take legal action against Council  

ATTORNEY GENERAL, Anil Nandlall, SC, strongly criticised the Mayor and City Councillors of Georgetown, as well as the Guyana Police Force (GPF), for their ineffective handling of the issue of illegal vending in the country’s capital, highlighting their administrative incompetence.

The Attorney General, known for his unwavering dedication to maintaining law and order, expressed serious concern about the uncontrolled proliferation of street vendors and stressed the pressing necessity for immediate measures to restore order to the bustling streets of the city.

“The City Council is simply not carrying out its statutory responsibilities, and neither is the Guyana Police Force.  There has been a combination of neglect both on the part of the City Council and the Guyana Police Force for decades. As a result, you have a monstrous situation of unlawful vending permeating the city with the resultant chaos, disorder, garbage, stench of bacteria and unsanitary conditions,” he said, during his weekly programme ‘Issues in the News’.

Nandlall mentioned that due to this lack of consideration, local businesses are taking legal action in the High Court. They are seeking injunctions against the City Council, demanding that vendors be removed from the vicinity of their stores.

The Attorney General stated that he “sincerely hopes” this initiative continues.

“Look, I am not against vending. Those who know me personally, know I used to be a market vendor. I know about vending but you cannot squat illegally. You cannot vend illegally. You cannot vend in such an unhygienic and disorderly manner. It will not be tolerated in any civilized society.”

Nandlall warned: “It is a criminal offence to encumber pavements and public roadways. It is a criminal offence to block someone’s ingress and egress to their premises. It is a criminal offence to vend without permission. It is a criminal offence to erect permanent structures without permission on parapets, public roadways and public reserves.”

Nevertheless, he mentioned that these violations are happening without any punishment. Nandlall also talked about the measures taken by the Public Works Ministry to tackle the problem of street vendors along Kingston’s seawalls.  He referred to those individuals as “squatting on the seawalls” and stated that the government will not accept the continuation of this illegal activity.
According to him, the government is trying every day to beautify the country, spending billions of taxpayers’ dollars in the process. “We are trying every day to uplift the physical image of the city and then you have this unsightly, unruly conduct of squatting and vending illegally permeating the city. It will not be tolerated. It will not be tolerated,” he pointed out.

COURT ORDERS
Recently, Bank DIH Limited (the parent company of Demico House), Discount Store, Muneshwers Limited, Collection Boutique and Gift Centre and Shamdas Kirpalani instituted legal proceedings against the City Council after the vending situation around their respective business establishments had gotten worse. Ruling in favour of the businesses, the Demerara High Court ordered the City Council to remove the vendors, along with their stands, structures, and personal items, from the sidewalk and adjacent areas outside the businesses.

In separate applications before the court, the businesses, among other things, complained that the vending issue had gotten worse in recent years without any intervention from the City Council.

Due to this situation, all the businesses reported that their access to their properties had been hindered, leading to significant financial losses. The businesses stated that the presence of vendors caused congestion, which in turn led to an increase in pickpocketing incidents. These criminals would target both the establishments’ customers and random pedestrians. Additionally, a number of them raised concerns about vendors selling and smoking narcotics, particularly marijuana, in close proximity to their businesses. The vendors were subsequently removed during enforcement exercises carried out by the Police and City Council. Earlier this week, the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), through its attorney, issued a stern warning to the City Council, threatening to initiate legal proceedings if street vendors from the hospital’s vicinity are not removed within seven days.

Meanwhile, Town Clerk (ag) of Georgetown, Candace Nelson, has said that following the court orders, the Council had been contacted by a few of the affected vendors regarding relocation. However, she stated that due to the increasing volume of such requests, the Council is unable to relocate anyone at this time. Moreover, she revealed that several businesses have asked the Council to remove persons vending around their buildings.