– even senior members of the constabulary

THE City Constabulary Department of the Mayor and City Council (M&CC) has again been accused of unlawfully demanding money from store owners and other vendors.
Mayor Patricia Chase-Green said on Monday that she was disgusted by such reports involving constables and even senior members of the Constabulary.

She said she is in possession of many allegations of this nature, and that the victims are afraid to come forward because of their fear of being victimised.

The constables are accused of demanding money for the space that vendors use outside of the store for their mannequins. In one instance, Chase-Green said a vendor who objected was even removed from his vending spot and replaced.

A van with several constables also swooped down on the owner of a caravan and threatened to remove it if the owner did not pay up, the mayor related.

Vendors at the various municipal markets in Georgetown continue to complain about the harassment they regularly experience at the hands of City Constables, but even so, they prefer not to make official reports, as they claim that those in the higher authority also accept bribes.

Chief Constable Andrew Foo had told the Guyana Chronicle in the past that those vendors who are affected by bribery on the part of the constabulary officers ought to lodge official reports, and he had guaranteed that such matters will be investigated.
“But they don’t come in; there is an agreement between the vendors and officers, but whenever the officers have to act, the vendors come up with all sorts of allegations,” Foo said, adding:

“People who give and receive a bribe can also be charged. But no one is coming forward to make official reports; they go to the politicians instead to lodge their complaints, but that’s not right.

“So it remains just an allegation if no one comes in. Why do the vendors do business at the level of a constabulary officer?”
The Mayor had also chided those vendors who pay bribes, but complain only when they experience a problem. “The constables don’t push their hands in your pocket,” she had said.

“Not because you know the Chief Constable or some other officer in authority, it means you will disrespect the constables in uniform. Don’t be no ‘big-boy’ or ‘big-girl’ and jump on your phone.”

Chase-Green had also noted that it is equally important for the constabulary officers to be respectful to the vendors and not just break up their stalls and carry away their items without proper explanation.