Georgetown: Five individuals have volunteered to work along with the Ministry of Home Affairs on behalf of push cart vendors after a meeting on the regularisation of the pushcart business ended with some concerns over proposed measures and a prototype of what the government believes a pushcart should resemble.
The prototype and its features were displayed to pushcart vendors who assembled in the auditorium of St Stanislaus College on Brickdam today for a meeting with Minister of Home Affairs Clement Rohee, Minister of Public Works Robeson Benn and Assistant Police Commissioner George Vyphuis.
The slightly higher model that includes a Digital Video Discs (DVDs) player was subject to much scrutiny by the attendees who from experience in the business shared their views on whether or not the new option is feasible.
Some compared the new model to the current carts expressing doubts about the storage capacity even as they were assured by the team of Government officials that the structure can be readjusted to suit the comfort of the vendor.
A suite of proposed guidelines that was crafted by the National Commission on Law and Order (NCLO) as part of ongoing efforts to regularise pushcart vendors around the city also prompted more questions.
Minister Rohee who read out the guidelines, pointed to licencing, a designated location, an inventory showing customers the types and variety of CDs and DVDs available to make purchasing much easier and the availability of earphones.
The pushcart vendors however, opposed the notion of earphones, arguing that blaring music is more likely to attract customers and a designated location they see as the breeding ground for competition and rifts.
But Minister Rohee argued in defence of the proposal, explaining that the objective behind a designated location is not to have blaring music, but offer a service to customers, many of whom are not always influenced by the sound of music coming from a pushcart.
“We have to get away from this thing that you have to play the music for people to know what kind of music they want. You don’t have to play the music publicly… if a person knows what kind of music they want they go straight and they ask for it,” Minister Rohee argued.
The vendors were told that the government prefers the option of consultation rather that enforcement which it has the constitutional power to do given the many violations that pushcart vendors commit.
Minister Benn said, “you have to be prepared to make the compromises to continue your business. If the truth be told, you are along a line of piracy of music and I don’t want to talk about the performing rights organisations and all those things which you need to pay attention to run your business properly.”
The Public Works Minister remains optimistic that the changes Government has envisioned for the pushcart business is possible as he was optimistic when a row had ensued over regulations for marine transportation.
NCLO member Roshan Khan who was part of today’s meeting appealed for compromise as he briefly addressed the vendors.
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