Police report filed over removal of regional flag

Showdown between Lethem Mayor, Regional Vice Chair

Relations between the Mayor and Town Council of Lethem and the Regional Vice Chairman have apparently soured, with a report being filed with the Police against Vice Chairman Karl Singh over the removal of a proposed regional flag.

It is understood that during the Independence Day observances, Mayor Carlton Beckles had used the regional flag; one of the products of consultations central government held in which some regional representatives had agreed to adopt their individual flags.

In a statement condemning the “unceremonious” removal of the flag by Singh, the Mayor and Town Council of Lethem stated that it has lodged an official report with the Guyana Police Force, where statements were given. “We now look forward for the law to take its course, since this individual seems adamant on carrying out the wishes of his masters and would have shown total disregard for the vision of the President of this country and the Government of the day,” the Council stated.

“His action is also in total disrespect to the Town Council since the flag was raised within the boundary of the town at an area that is the responsibility of the Council. This flag was raised by the Council at 00:30 hours on the 26th of May, 2017 at the flag raising ceremony.”

According to the Council, Singh objected to the proposed flag being raised on the grounds that they had not finished their consultations. But the Council noted that this is four months after the mandate was received from Communities Minister Ronald Bulkan.

“The Mayor and Town Council of Lethem did their consultations within the township and submitted their reports to the Ministry of Communities and the Regional Chairman; from all observances, it seem that the office of the Regional Chairman is dragging its feet in having these consultations done and the actions of the Regional Vice Chairman is proof of this,” the statement affirmed.

“However, he would have miscalculated and might have broken the law. The Mayor requests that an investigation be done to determine whether the law was broken and what law was broken since the flag was raised in a public space and it is the property of the Government of Guyana, and open spaces within the municipality boundaries are the responsibility of the Mayor and Town Council.”

According to the Council, the decision to remove the flag was “disrespectful to the Mayor and Town Council of Lethem, the residents of Lethem, and the Disciplined Services. He had no right to arbitrarily remove a symbol, despite the fact it was still in proposal mode, from a square designed to accommodate national commemorative observances.”

In 2015, when the Government announced its intention to assign each administrative region with its very own flag, it posited that this was a move which depicted a representation of independence.

The A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change coalition contended that this decision would complement the Administration’s effort to implement a de-centralised governing system in the country.

But the move has long been denounced for offering no tangible benefit. In addition, the People’s Progressive Party had stated that the Constitution of Guyana speaks of one flag, the Golden Arrowhead, as the constitutional flag of Guyana. It had also noted that the consultations would not reach a consensus.