Deputy Mayor moves to court to block Sooba’s involvement in rental of Mash Day spots

Deputy Mayor of Georgetown Patricia Chase-Green has moved to the High Court in an effort to block the acting Town Clerk Carol Sooba from administering the rental of spots for vendors along the route for the annual Mashramani Day parade.

At a press briefing held at City Hall yesterday, Chase-Green disclosed that a copy of the writ was delivered to Sooba.

Over the past weeks, councillors and Sooba have both claimed responsibility for the allocation of vending spots along the route.

The Deputy Mayor’s claim is that the activity falls under the supervision of the Social Development Committee, which has been historically responsible for the activity. As a result, she and members of the committee have advised prospective vendors to obtain permission to obtain a vending spot free of cost by applying through a desk in the mayoral complex, while Sooba is charging persons to vend on the same spots.

Sooba recently announced at a press conference that the police force will work closely with the city constabulary to maintain order during the celebrations and persons who would have applied for vending spots through the mayoral complex will face the full force of the law.

Chase-Green, however, has maintained that Sooba does not have the authority to manage the rental of the spots and cannot interfere with anything in relation to it. “Sooba cannot take no action against nobody… it’s our 45th republic anniversary; it’s a Guyanese thing and we are celebrating under the theme, ‘One People, One Culture and One Celebration,’” Chase-Green said.

Additionally, she noted that Sooba was intensely supported by the Local Government Minister Norman Whittaker, who does not have the right to stick his nose into the day-to-day management of the city council. She also charged that Whittaker has allegedly given Sooba permission to sign cheques without the authorised signatures of two councillors, which was legally required for cheques to be issued.