Town Clerk, PPP councillor distance themselves from lawsuit over constabulary building

Last Updated on Friday, 10 April 2026, 23:38 by Writer

Georgetown city’s Town Clerk Candace Nelson on Friday said she had nothing to do with the filing of court action against the Guyana government and a private security firm, arguing that it is merely a legal reference that means that legal action involving the Council is in the name of the Town Clerk.

“In this particular matter, there was no decision of the Council to file this matter so when they came to me on Thursday, I told that I needed legal advice on it because I was a bit skeptical about certain things that were mentioned in their statement of claim,” Ms Nelson told Demerara Waves Online News.

She recalled telling councillors Clayton Hinds and Lelon Saul to talk with City Mayor Alfred Mentore and send her a memorandum “as quickly as possible”, requesting a round-robin to identify someone else to sign the document “but the round-robin never came to me.”

She maintained that she did not sign any document seeking High Court orders and injunctions against the Attorney General and RK Security in connection with the possession, access or works at the property on Water Street, Georgetown that once housed the City Constabulary Training Complex.

“I never signed that document. I had nothing to do with it,” she added.

Ms Nelson explained that she was exempted from that matter because the Council had already identified someone else to deal with it.

Ms Nelson also challenged the accuracy of point mentioned in the court papers that on March 27 there was an extraordinary meeting and a resolution was passed by the Georgetown municipality mandating the Mayor to seek urgent legal advice and if necessary initiate appropriate legal proceedings, including judicial review, to protect the Council’s statutory authority and assets.

She said, instead, a resolution was not passed for that property but for the central government’s takeover of several roads from the municipality.

The Town Clerk said the extraordinary meeting was called to deal with the streets, although the Mayor mentioned the training complex.

She said there was no decision to go to court for the Constabulary Training Complex at 15 Water Street, Georgetown.

Ms Nelson is on leave.

Acting Town Clerk Carlyn Joseph also said she did not sign any of the court documents.

And People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPPC) City councillor, Don Singh said none of the PPPC councillors particpated in the lawsuit filing. “As a councillor Georgetown, I have no knowledge of this. No action was taken by the council to officially vote, that I am aware of, to proceed with legal proceedings,” he said.

He said none of the PPPC councillors received a round-robin document.

Filed in the name of the Town Clerk against he Attorney General, and RK Security in keeping with a resolution passed by the Council mandating the Mayor to take legal action, the High Court is being asked to find that the defendants trespassed on the property “owned by transport” since the 1800s and that the government and that security company are “not entitled to be, or to continue, in occupation and/or possession” of thar property.

The court action followed the discovery by the Mayor of Georgetown on Friday, March 27, that members of the Guyana Police Force were at the property where a signage was placed on the fence.

The High Court is also being asked to issue a “mandatory order” directing the government and RK Security “to remove” from the building and an injunction blocking the respondents from “carrying out any construction” or entering the property.

The Mayor and City Council is seeking GY$5 million in damages plus cost.

While local government minister Priya Manickchand recently said that the property belongs to the State dating back to the colonial era, City Mayor Alfred Mentore said the council has proof of ownership.