Fire Chief Kamaladeen Edoo was today released on $10,000 after he was charged for allegedly discriminatorily removing a fireman from a list of Guyana Fire Service (GFS) officers to be promoted.
The Fire Chief was not required to plead to the charge when he made his appearance before acting Chief Magistrate Sherdel Isaacs-Marcus at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court.
Firefighter Neville Cumberbatch had filed a complaint against the Fire Chief over the removal of his name from the GFS’s promotion list.
Cumberbatch alleges that Edoo, having statutory and general superintendence of the GFS, unlawfully discriminated against him on or around June-August 2021, by removing his name from a list of persons deemed eligible for consideration for promotion which was approved on January 29, 2021, by former Chief Fire Officer Marlon Gentle.
Cumberbatch deposed that he was removed from the promotion list based on disciplinary infractions, while other ranks facing equal or more egregious disciplinary infractions were promoted ahead of him.
According to the firefighter, the act of Fire Chief Edoo is contrary to Section 5 (2) (d) of the Prevention of Discrimination Act. Fire Chief Edoo has already been summoned and is expected to appear at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts on Monday to answer the complaint.
The matter has been adjourned to October 11. Edoo is being represented by Attorney Sase Gunraj while Cumberbatch’s lawyer is Eusi Anderson.
