Private Sector Commission (PSC) Chairman Eddie Boyer has stated if the parking meter contract was not transparent, it should be disregarded while the Transparency Institute of Guyana Inc (TIGI) has come out to criticise what it believes is a lack of local governance.
Over the past few months, the parking meter contract has come under fire from all sections of the public, but the Government has reassured stakeholders that it has found nothing illegal in the contract which was signed with Smart City Solutions Inc.
“If it is transparent, we will buy it; if it is not transparent, then they have to go back and come back again and I think the whole issue of the parking meters is transparency,” Boyer asserted, adding that he agreed that the contract should have undergone an in-debt review.
When the contract was signed in June for implementation throughout Georgetown, many persons were alarmed about the lack of transparency in the deal, with some saying that it appeared to be a shady one aimed at exploiting the local populace.
Despite this, Smart City Solutions Inc had gone ahead and conducted demonstration exercises on how the parking meter would work throughout the city. Persons were also seen conducting assessments on various streets in the city.
Government had ordered a review of the contract between Smart City Solutions Inc and the Georgetown Mayor and City Council (M&CC) following rising apprehension about the project’s transparency.
The review was conducted by Finance Minister Winston Jordan and Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister Basil Williams, and it was later disclosed that there were no illegalities found.
It also appeared based on a review of the documents that the terms and conditions of the contract were onerous and heavily in favour of the concessionaire, Minister of State, Joseph Harmon had indicated.
He assured that recommendations were made to ensure that Guyanese were not ripped off.
However, the TIGI is of the opinion that the deal is shrouded in unaccountability and ambiguity.
“TIGI is of the view that the handling of the parking meter project by the Georgetown Municipality and its response to relevant queries exhibit a dearth of democratic principles and disdain for citizens that would lead to a feeling of exclusion, and alienation from the decision-making process. These failures serve as a strong contradiction to the purpose of local government,” TIGI President Troy Thomas said in a statement. 
Handpicking
He said there was no open tendering for the project and there was “handpicking” of a contractor and Councillors to conduct due diligence in Mexico.
“This was perhaps necessary as it was a fool’s errand from the onset against the backdrop of an already signed contract, which positioned it in the interest of the Mayor to find the firm suitable or even exceeding the requirements,” he added.
Thomas stated that there ought to be transparency and accountability in the operations of local government and the views of the people must be respected. He contended that the project being allowed to continue in its current state despite a legal basis for enacting a new and transparent process was a telling blow to “transparency, accountability and good governance”.
“The people of Georgetown, their children, grandchildren and perhaps great-great-grandchildren have been bullied into a deal, the details of which are yet unknown and which, from all accounts, has not benefited from an assessment of feasibility or their input. It is the people that bear the burden of poor governance and it is up to them to be vigilant and to use the democratic provisions to have their voices heard,” he said.
Delayed installation
The project was initially slated to commence in September; however, on Monday, Georgetown Mayor Patricia Chase Green announced that it would be not be starting in September.
According to Chase Green, after the report and agreement between the Mayor and City Council and Smart City Solutions, no irregularities were found.
She disclosed that the Finance Ministry made recommendations that would be discussed by the members of the Council at a later date. “I would have asked that the Town Clerk distribute a copy to every Councillor and that he sets aside a date next week so that the entire Council can sit and review the report and look at a way forward with the parking meters.”
Chase Green also highlighted that alterations would be made pertaining to the proposed parking fee per hour, indicating that the cost may be decreased to $200 an hour or less, based on the agreement of the M&CC.
“The report went with the $500 an hour, there is to be discussions about a reduction.”
