Sherod Duncan to contest Mayoral elections

Last Updated on Thursday, 1 December 2016, 20:19 by Denis Chabrol

Deputy Mayor  Sherod Duncan on Thursday announced that he intends to contest for the post of Mayor of Georgetown whenever internal elections are held.

Duncan says he has secured the backing of his Alliance For Change political party and his constituency

” I’m in – I feel beyond humbled that I have the full support of my Party and Constituency as I pursue the leadership of the Municipality of Georgetown, realizing the democratic process of Local Government,” he said.

Since Local Government Elections were held earlier this year, he has been at constant odds with incumbent Mayor, Patricia Chase-Green over transparency, accountability and inclusive decision-making. Chase-Green is from the People’s National Congress Reform-dominated A Partnership for National Unity (APNU).

Earlier this week, AFC Leader Khemraj Ramjattan said his party’s executive was staying clear of deciding who should be Georgetown’s next Chief Citizen.

Duncan, in announcing his decision, stopped short of knocking the Mayor and her allies, saying “over the last few months we have been heading in the wrong direction.”

Duncan said President of Guyana David Arthur Granger has set his government’s vision for capital towns as engines for economic development of the regions of which they are the nucleus, a position he supports.

“I am of the view that Georgetown as our National Capital City of Guyana need, more than any other municipality, to realign itself away from what President Granger calls the “compound mentality” towards a “capital mentality” and economic mentality”.

“In the compound mentality we are concerned with “control rather than consultation and collaboration with residents”. But with the capital mentality as a worldview we are concerned with “moving beyond providing traditional municipal services.”

“The new emphasis should be on “promoting business, driving economic development and giving leadership to our regions”.

In the commercial mentality infrastructure, investment, innovation, information and communication technology are all central in fostering economies of scale which are essential to economic growth within the framework of a green economy.”

In aligning ourselves strategically within the framework of central government’s view of capital towns as growth drivers within a green economy City Hall must pursue several core initiatives which, over the next year, will see us more fiscally responsibly, streamline our services offered for efficiency, retool our workers for greater productivity and engage civil society and the Private Sector towards partnerships; synergies for success.”

I believe that greater things are still to be done in this city, so I look forward to continue engaging city residents and businesses in the coming hours and days on these ideas and how together we can move Georgetown forward,” he said.

Duncan and Chase-Green had contested Local Government Elections on a joint APNU+AFC ticket.