Dear Editor, Dear Editor, With the parking meter ignominy slipping into oblivion, here comes a new debacle to entertain the citizenry of our capital and that is the ‘Porta-Potty Fiasco’. Unbelievable! And even more unbelievable is the fact that the Councillors seem afraid to tell the offenders that this is extortion against the citizenry.What is most egregious is that the Town Clerk is reported to have said that he doesn’t see what the fuss is about renting portable toilets at ,000 each and that it is more feasible renting than buying them. If this is not an insult to the intelligence of the citizens of Georgetown, then we don’t know what is. Would this gentleman have agreed to paying this amount out of his super salary each month? I guess not, as it is more than the monthly mortgage most persons pay for an entire house that contains more than one bathroom. But who cares, it is just the citizens who have to pay.His logic that renting one toilet at ,000 per month being more feasible than purchasing one for just about the same price is just twisted and bizarre. I have a few questions for him.a. What happened in the past? How were the Constabulary and security staffers making out before the advent of portable toilets? How did citizens, particularly children that utilise play parks and recreational facilities survive before he came along with this amazingly brilliant idea? With public conveniences and permanent toilet facilities of course. And then he unthinkingly brings in his favourite tune that he pirated from his intellectual superiors some time ago, about the green economy. Well for his information the chemicals used to maintain those toilets hinders rather than helps the greening of our city.b. Why does the Town Clerk find procuring the allied resources (chemicals) and maintaining the facility (extracting the waste and replacing the dispensers, the soap liquid and the toilet paper rolls) such a challenge? He has more resources than the toilet companies. He has a procurement department that is responsible for purchasing things both locally and overseas, he has public convenience attendants and sanitation workers on the employ of the Council who idle most of the day and who could be commissioned into maintaining these porta potties, he has a public health department that could be responsible for storing and dispensing these chemicals. He has vehicles that can rotate these facilities. He even has a Health and Safety Officer that can be put in charge of this system. I wish to let the Town Clerk know that all over the world porta potties are used at construction sites, natural disasters, special events such as race track events, weddings, bicycle races/marathons and movie sets, camp grounds, concerts and festival venues; not as a replacement for public conveniences and outdoor toilets at residences. The “Fantastic Four” must be stopped now before the entire City Hall is decimated.
Sincerely, Mateo Phelephe
