Opposition Leader Dr Bharrat Jagdeo today reiterated his call for the Georgetown Mayor and City Council to scrap the controversial Parking Meter Project in its entirety.
Jagdeo expressed full solidarity and support for the widespread protest against the imposition of this project which he posits lacks transparency and brings additional burden to people.
He insisted that “a reduction of rates will be merely palliative and does not in any way address the transparency issue or ease the burden on our citizens who are already overwhelmed with excessive increases in almost 200 new taxes, fees and VAT-TABLE items in less than two (2) years of the APNU+AFC government.’’
The Opposition leader also noted the “duplicitous positions and complicit role of the Granger government on this matter.”
“They started out by disowning the project claiming local government autonomy but Minister Bulkan has signed By-laws into effect. The government sought to mislead and deceive Guyanese by claiming Cabinet and the Attorney-General had not approved the by-laws. If that is true, then the President should sanction Minister Bulkan.
“However, there is grave suspicion about this being a concoction to obfuscate the matter. Nevertheless, it is important to note that the parking meter project could not have been implemented without the signing of those By-laws” Jagdeo asserted.
Another duplicitous action, Jagdeo said, is when President Granger convened a meeting to instruct the Georgetown Mayor & City Council to reduce the parking meter rates, having claimed earlier he was not interfering in local government matters.
The government, he noted, even went against its own Ministry of Finance recommendation to scrap the project.
According to Jagdeo, from all indications, the Granger government supported this project from its inception and throughout while the APNU+AFC dominated Georgetown Mayor & City Council was emboldened by the support.
The Opposition Leader says he remains supportive of the civil society protest while noting that nothing short of scrapping the parking meter project will suffice.
The mayor and city council must be fired for the way this parking meter contract was done!
Mr Bharat,
What you should be looking into..do you know?
Too many vehicles no roads, that’s so many accidents per capita, and more so hw many drivers really studied to pass to get a driver’s licence?driver licence is not right, its a privilege, so respect it.
Mr, ex President Bharat Jagdeo, you did a well more than amazing job for Guyana, you brought the country to the 21’st century, you served your term… u can’t be president again and anymore of Guyana. I am pro PPP(the cup) parking meters will dicipline drivers more and control traffic and make the streets safer and more user frieldly so everyone can have access especially in the buiness high areas.. it will allow everyone equal opportunity, I am with President Granger for that.