GEORGETOWN residents are being “held hostage to poor politics,” as the Mayor and councillors aligned to A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) backed out of a scheduled engagement aimed at charting a way forward on the city’s worsening solid-waste disposal challenges, according to Minister of Local Government and Regional Development Priya Manickchand.
In a statement posted to her official Facebook page on Monday, Minister Manickchand disclosed that the Mayor, Alfred Mentore, had initially accepted an invitation to attend a closed-door meeting at 11:00hrs to discuss a way forward for solid-waste management in the capital.
However, she said that after requesting that all councillors be invited to ensure broad representation from each constituency, the Mayor withdrew his participation at the last minute.
“No APNU councillor was present at the meeting,” the minister stated, adding that councillors who did arrive later received calls and “hurriedly left the compound.”
According to Manickchand, the decision to widen the invitation was intended to foster inclusive dialogue and benefit from the perspectives of councillors representing residents across the city.
The sudden withdrawals, she noted, undermined ongoing efforts to build a collaborative working relationship between central government and the Mayor and City Council (M&CC).
In view of the developments, Minister Manickchand said she invited members of the media to be briefed on the extent of work already undertaken by her ministry to improve coordination with the M&CC, as well as on “various discussions that have been had where commitments were made by the M&CC but not kept.”
“It is clear the Mayor and APNU councillors benefit in some way from a city that is approaching being inhabitable,” Manickchand asserted, signalling mounting frustration with what she characterised as deliberate obstruction in addressing the capital’s sanitation crisis.
She pointed out that while she has worked tirelessly to strengthen collaboration between the central government and the municipal authority, service delivery to citizens must take precedence.
“This cannot continue,” the minister said, adding: “Service to citizens must trump my desire to work tirelessly for a more collaborative effort between central government and the M&CC.”
Manickchand stressed that residents, commuters and visitors to Georgetown should not suffer as a result of political manoeuvring, particularly as waste accumulation and sanitation challenges intensify.
“The residents and users of the city must not be held hostage to poor politics,” she said, underscoring that public officials have a duty to be responsive to the needs of the population.
“That duty will be honoured,” the minister pledged.
On Sunday, Manickchand expressed her displeasure with the state of Georgetown, giving city officials up to 11:00 hrs Monday to submit a comprehensive plan that will reverse the situation.
The ministry said during a meeting with the mayor, councillors, and the Chief Sanitation Officer of the City of Georgetown on Sunday afternoon, Minister Manickchand expressed deep concern, disappointment, and consternation over the current state of the city.
She emphasised that the present conditions are wholly unacceptable, stressing that sanitation services, solid-waste disposal, and garbage collection must be reliable, predictable, and effective.
Within recent weeks, there have been complaints in numerous areas about a disruption in garbage-collection services.
Residents in areas such as Campbellville and Tucville reported that during the Christmas season they observed a delay in garbage collection. In downtown Georgetown, there are growing piles of garbage.