Georgetown Mayor proposes $40,000 increase in littering fine

Ubraj Narine
Ubraj Narine

Georgetown Mayor, Ubraj Narine, has proposed that the littering fine be hiked to $50,000, as he believes that punitive measures need to be instituted to ensure that persons refrain from the act.

Narine, a press release from the Mayor and City Council said, opined that the current $10,000 fine is too meagre, and thus proposed the raise.

The mayor’s proposal was fuelled by his visits to several areas where cleaning was carried out by the council, with support from its special volunteer group. Narine was “disappointed to observe how those areas are overtaken with litter”.

“The Chief Citizen noted that it is unfair for the Council to be expending resources to engage in cleanup activities around the City and in a short space of time the areas that were cleaned have returned to a very untidy state. He noted that the cleanup initiatives are done by a special volunteer group in collaboration with the Georgetown City Council,” the release stated.

“The Mayor is urging all citizens to co-operate with the Council as it works assiduously to keep the environment clean. Every citizen must take responsibility for their immediate environment in which they live, work and play, therefore inculcating environmentally friendly attitudes.  The Mayor once again makes a clarion call for citizens refrain from depositing waste in drains, parapets and to work with the Council to preserve the environment,” the council urged.

Acknowledging the need for additional measures to change citizen behaviour, the mayor stated that there is need for an aggressive education programme to be implemented in schools and local

communities, with special emphasis on the three Rs—reduce, reuse and recycle.

Furthermore, he said that the placement of bins at strategic locations around the city will help to control the mini dump sites that the Solid Waste Management Department encounters every day in their clearing exercises. However, he noted that an assessment and feasibility study first need to be done to determine the number of bins required and where they should be placed.

Kitty Market

Mayor Narine also addressed the increase in stall rents at the Kitty Market, which he said is necessary for the provision of auxiliary services and overhead expenses. However, he has agreed to meet with vendors who have raised concerns about the price increase, M&CC reported.

“The Mayor noted that vendors must be cognizant that they are occupying a new facility. Several vendors have voiced their concerns publically about the increased rents. For many years, some vendors [paid the] meagre sum of one thousand dollars. The Mayor said he will arrange a special meeting to address the concerns of the vendors in this regard”, another release stated.

It added that according to the market bylaws, the Clerk of Markets has the power to levy fees.

“Section 22 states that every market fee livable and made payable under these bylaws shall be demanded and received by the Clerk of Markets and his receipts shall be sufficient acquittance and discharge for the same. In default of the payment of any such fee the Clerk of Markets may seize and sell at auction any goods for which such fee is payable sufficient for the payment of such fee”, it noted.