M&CC container blocking excuse is “sheer poppycock”

Dear Editor,

The bizarre, brutish and daft action by the Mayor and City Councillors (M&CC) of Georgetown against two Water Street shipping companies last Tuesday which saw them blocking the movement of container-laden trucks from the companies and city wharves over a $25,000 shipping container tax, shows the greed, disrespect for legal decisions and barbaric nature of the Town Clerk and the forces at City Hall.

This latest move by City Hall is clearly a vulgar reaction to what happened less than two weeks ago, after the proposed $25,000 Container parking fee was thrown out by the court. Royston King’s account that this move is merely aimed at commencing repair works to the roads is sheer poppycock. Evidently, this Council is anti-business.

Why would they send their City constables to place barricades outside the entrances of Muneshwers and John Fernandes Limited on Water Street, rather than inviting their officials for discussions, the same way the Town Clerk invites John Fernandes Limited to sponsor Environmental Community Health Organization (ECHO) initiatives or Muneshwar’s to sponsor other projects?

King, who is not a lawyer, clearly misunderstanding and misquoting Section 274/76 of the city by-laws to suggest that they are entitled to fees by those persons who use roadways, streets, parapets and space owned by all citizens of the city. It was the same twisted logic he used when he tried and failed to extract $25,000, and $36,000 for each additional day, from business owners in downtown Georgetown for the parking of containers in front of their premises for the purpose of offloading goods they shipped in.

King’s assertion that they are not getting at the containers really, but rather to do maintenance works, and critical works to the roadways in the city is laughable. Why then does he not charge the Bush Trucks and the Sand Trucks traversing the city? Why does he not block King Fish from parking 24/7 and selling at the corner of King and Regent Streets?

The problem is that every time legal action has to be taken against the Council, it costs the person who has to take them to court, it costs the citizens of Georgetown for mounting a defence but the Council could care less because the money is not coming out of their pockets but rather that of the citizens. But most of all it is a waste of the Court’s time.

Deodarie Putulall