Parking meters
… regulations absolve City officials of responsibility for damaged vehicles
Vehicle owners, whose vehicles are towed and impounded, will not be compensated for any damages to their vehicles during the process. This is among the several daunting provisions in the City By-laws which was recently assented to by Communities Minister Ronald Bulkan.
Ronald Bulkan
Having reviewed the By-laws, Transparency Institute of Guyana Inc (TIGI) President, Dr Troy Thomas on Tuesday came out swinging at the City Council and Minister Bulkan, noting that it makes no logical sense that these laws delegate power to the City Constabulary that absolves them of any responsibility or liability for the property of citizens.
Speaking with Guyana Times, Dr Thomas said if the Constabulary is going to tow a person’s vehicle, they must be held liable for damages that occur in the process.
“It doesn’t make logical sense to give yourself the power to move people’s property while at the same time absolving you of any responsibility for its damaged,” he said. “You’re basically saying that the person’s property is at your mercy and it can be returned in any condition, and the person can do nothing about it. They have to take some responsibility for it. It doesn’t make sense to me.”
Dr Thomas said that from the onset, TIGI had identified that there were several issues with the way the project was handled, which demonstrated poor
Dr Troy Thomas
governance.
“You disregarded the people with everything that was said, all the letters that were written, the editorials, the written statements people have been making. The parking meter project was not conceptualised and executed in the interest of the people.”
“And whenever that happens, if it’s a democratic society, it’s correct that there are consequences. So I personally welcome the action that the people have taken to have their voices heard, just on the principle that the people were disregarded in the process.”
According to Thomas, the system in place seemed to be beyond what citizens can afford. He pointed to the fees for parking itself and the penalties. Thomas noted that from a TIGI standpoint, if the people were dissatisfied with the way their affairs are managed then they were entitled to use the democratic process to have their voices heard.
He added that “it’s the citizens who have the power and not the politicians who have been put in charge of citizens’ affairs. It should send a strong message to those in charge that you cannot treat the people in this way.”
By-Laws
Guarding against liability or prosecution, Section 23 of the City By-laws exempts City Constables, parking wardens and the City Council itself from any liability, civil or criminal, for any damages “in respect of any action, proceeding or demand whatsoever whether for the recovery of any alleged damage to such vehicle or otherwise in respect of removal thereof.”
The City By-laws also go on to mandate that “when a City Constable or parking warden has reason to believe that a person has contravened any prohibition or restriction imposed by the Act, the City Constable or parking warden may give the person a notice under this By-law in respect of the offence.”
But it also caters for those who may be tempted to withhold information. Under Part VII, Offences and Penalties, it is an offence attracting a fine of $50,000 to refuse to provide one’s name and address or to give a false one, if asked to do so by a parking warden or City Constable for the notice to be provided.
The Act also stipulates that owners of vehicles deemed to be illegally parked are liable for any fees incurred from immobilisation, removal, towing, improvement, and storage.
In cases where someone is convicted of removing or attempting to remove the clamp without authorisation, they will be slapped with a $100,000 fine and imprisonment of not more than three months. Section 57 stipulates that if a vehicle is unclaimed or if the owner of the vehicle cannot settle any outstanding fees, the vehicle can be auctioned off by City Hall.
City Hall is mandated to publish a notice of this auction 14 days beforehand.
These are just some of the provisions included in the By-laws assented to by Minister Bulkan. In spite of his approval, however, the By-laws are still awaiting the approval of Attorney General Basil Williams and the Government to gazette them. However, Smart City Solutions Inc employees and the City have been clamping motorists and enforcing the stipulations in the By-laws on an almost daily basis.
