Vendors operating at the New Amsterdam Municipal Market staged a protest calling on the municipality to reduce stall rentals, claiming that the recent increases are unjustified.
The fees have reportedly increased in some instances by 100 per cent. The vendors reported that stand fees have moved from $600 to $1200 and from $1000 to $2000 per week.
Farida Mohan who has been a vendor at the market for over 30 years explained that under the current administration, things have changed.
“This market used to be very nice but since this new one took over the market is getting worse. We can’t afford to pay the money they are asking for. I can’t afford to pay the market fee of $1000. I have three stalls then I have to pay the cart man $1000 or $800 then I have to pay the car to bring me $3000 then I have to pay $1000 to them for landing fee…”
Another vendor, Clare Sattar who controls four stalls in the market noted that fees have moved from $500 to $1000 per stand weekly.
“A week is $4000 they want now. Apart from that, when I come in the mornings, I have to clean all around my stalls and clean the stall. The garbage you have to pick it up yourself. They don’t have nobody to clean the garbage; they say that they are short of staff. When the garbage truck comes you have to fetch the garbage and throw it into the truck yourself. You have to cobweb and clean all over; the Council isn’t doing anything – that can’t wuk,” the upset vendor expressed.
The vendors also claimed that the bylaws of the town prohibit the establishment of supermarkets within proximity to the municipal market but this is not being enforced, which is negatively impacting their businesses.
“We come out here to protest because we can’t pay the $1000 for the stand rent. I have three stands and if you check it, it is $3000, plus we have to pay landing fee and each piece is $100 so I usually pay up to $1500,” Savatri Persaud, another vendor revealed.
“It too much on we. If you have to go and pee it is $100 and some of the girls can’t afford that. We used to pay $40… It should stay at $40. I usually get to see but the majority of the vendors at the front don’t get to sell,” she continued.
Also joining the protest line were pushcart operators who say they are also being affected. According to Samuel Watson, who has been operating a push cart for more than 30 years at the New Amsterdam Market, he was charged $300 for each load he took into the market. That cart fee was subsequently increased to $1000 every time he took a load into the market.
“From $1000 now they want $2000 and now they want us to buy a uniform. What we would do with the old clothes that we have and we used to work at the market?” he questioned.
Watson said that on many occasions they are vehicles mainly lorries which block the entrance to the flow of traffic in the market making it difficult for them to operate.
“They have raised the fees on us so now we have to raise the fees on the vendors and they are rowing with us.”
Another push cart operator Stephen Williams said he started operating a push cart in the market when the fee was $500.
“Then they make one jump to $1000, then they one big jump to $2000. I asked them how they arrived at that figure and they said it came from the top.”
Two weeks ago, the council held a meeting with vendors upon their request during which several issues affecting them were raised.
