By Fareeza Haniff
[www.inewsguyana.com] – As the drama at City Hall continues, Mayor Hamilton Green has accused Town Clerk (ag) Carol Sooba of being ethnically biased.
During his appearance on the radio programme ‘Hard Talk’ aired on 90.1 Love FM on Sunday, February 01, the Mayor pointed out several instances in which Sooba’s alleged ethnic bias was revealed.
He told host of the programme, Chris Chapwayna, that upon Sooba’s appointment as the Town Clerk, she met an Afro Guyanese as her Secretary but replaced her with an Indo Guyanese woman.
“We don’t know what qualifications she [new secretary] has. There was no vacancy. The Minister intervened to have her [new secretary] employed,” the Mayor said.
He further noted, “There was an Afro Guyanese driver for the Town Clerk vehicle; she had him removed and had an Indo Guyanese Inspector of the Constabulary to be her driver.”
According to the Mayor, he detailed these and more instances to President Donald Ramotar in a letter, as he explained that the President reportedly met him at a ‘function’ and accused the City Council of being against Sooba because she is a “woman and because she is Indian.”
“I’ve never had problems with women; in fact our two previous Town Clerks were women and they were both dismissed because they went along the wrong path.
“I wrote him and said it is quite the opposite and gave him instances where Ms Sooba practiced racism,” Mayor Green explained.
He believes that Sooba is working in the interest of the ruling People’s Progressive Party.
Meanwhile, Green continues to maintain that the Town Clerk is suffering from a case of megalomania, which is a symptom of mental illness marked by delusions of greatness and wealth.
He explained that upon Sooba’s appointment, he took a “principled position” to cooperate with her much to the dissatisfaction of Councilors; however according to the Mayor, “within weeks it became apparent that she had no interest in the cooperation of the Council and displayed the tendency of being wayward and ignored decisions of council.
“It was apparent that she wasn’t suitable, doesn’t have the mental aptitude, the willingness to carry out a task.”
He accused her of spending the Council’s money capriciously with the support of President Ramotar and Local Government Minister, Norman Whittaker.
“At Council meetings…she shouts at councils, she calls councils’ names, who should be in jail and who shouldn’t be in jail without any provocation.
“In Ms Sooba’s case, I can present evidence to you that she is very wayward. She has gone ahead, expended money to buy a suite I think from Home and Beyond for $500,000 in circumstances where City Hall is collapsing, where the Mayor did not ask to change the blinds in his office, because I knew we have financial problems; she goes ahead and spend half a million dollars without permission.”
Green reiterated that Sooba is unqualified for the position as he acknowledged that the rift between them is affecting the effective functioning of the City Council.
He believes that the only solution to the issue is the holding of Local Government Elections. Sooba is slated to appear in a subsequent programme to defend herself.
