City Hall’s high-handed termination of garbage contracts is a surprise

Dear Editor,

The pulling of services yet again by the garbage contractors, over the failure by City Hall to honour their payment obligations came as no surprise.  What is, however, surprising, is the high-handed, retaliatory move by City Hall to terminate the contracts of the two contractors.  City Hall never resorted to invoking the termination clauses of the contracts before, despite the several withdrawals of services by the contractors.

Is it because of the damning and damaging revelations by the contractors in their statement to citizens on the conduct of officials in the matter? It is puzzling for the Town Clerk to say to the contractors in a written submission, on the one hand, that the withdrawal of services constituted a termination of contract, since there was no suspension of services clause in the contract; and on the other hand, they “should not return to fulfil the contractual obligations of garbage collection services until and unless the matter is resolved in its entirety” (‘City notifies private garbage contractors of termination of contracts’ SS, August 6).  The termination clause was invoked by City Hall, so effectively the contract is cancelled and is therefore null and void.

The only way the contractors can return is if and when a new contract is negotiated between them and City Hall.

In the meantime garbage is beginning  to pile up all around. The concept of smooth continuity of operations seems alien to those at City Hall.

Yours faithfully,

Shamshun Mohamed