Egotism and absurdity of parking meter reps

Dear Editor,
The egotism and absurdity displayed last Saturday by persons from the parking meter company and the heavily armed goons that accompanied them on Robb Street, close to Wellington Street, speaks volumes about what is so wrong with the Georgetown City Council and with their infamous parking meter initiative. It was appalling to see this dark force descending on a parked vehicle and clamping its wheel with the gusto that suggested that the vehicle had belonged to a most wanted criminal that they had been searching for, for years, but could not locate.
The satire of it all is that, whilst they were feverishly locking the wheel, they were courteously approached by a serving member of our security forces who identified himself and who notified them that the vehicle had belonged to the Ministry of the Presidency and that it was assigned to and was being used a former President.
To make the matter even more egregious, it was pointed out that the area where the vehicle was parked had no parking meter assigned, nor was there any parking spaces, numbers or signs ascribed to that location.
Rather than expressing regret for what one would hope was a mistake and respectfully withdrawing, these dark forces decided to become insulting, discourteous and belligerent. This leaves one to wonder whether it was a mistake at all, or a premeditated act intended to discomfit one of our country’s political leaders.
Most citizens are aware of the challenges the City Police face in terms of recruiting members with the requisite aptitude, professional competency and politesse, but surely they must have enough common sense to at least realise that nowhere else in the world could, or would an official State vehicle assigned to a former president be pounced upon and subjected to such gaucherie.
Clearly this course of action compromised the safety and security of this official, displays the lack of training of the parking meter operatives and accompanying constables, the lack of experience, strategic planning and operational capacity of the company, but more importantly, it highlights the venality and malevolence of the Georgetown Municipality.
But the former President’s security detail, who is a serving member of the Guyana Police Force, a real Policeman, should not be absolved of all blame as the moment he realised that these meter maids were immobilising this vehicle, which clearly compromised the safety and security of the VIP he was protecting, he should have forcefully prevented them and called for back-up and have the entire meter company gang arrested.
Could anyone imagine this earthiness being allowed in any other part of the world, whether by the US Secret Service, Russian FSO or the Presidential Honour Guard Brigade of Venezuela, who are responsible for protecting current and former presidents? And then came their inane response and defence that there was no visible means of identifying the vehicle’s owner. Are they serious? These people who masquerade as law enforcement officers do not have a clue about security. What were they looking for? A large decal pasted on the four doors with a sign marked ‘Vehicle belongs to the Ministry of the Presidency, transporting Former President’?
It is time for the citizens to be shown the contract that was entered into between the Georgetown City Council and Smart City Solutions, it is time for the Council’s financial and human resources to be audited and it is time for changes to be effected to the Council’s administrative arm.

Sincerely,
Amber Valentine