Even with the threats of the Mayor & City Council (M&CC) to move to the court over what it described as a hostile takeover of city streets; the Ministry of Public Works has moved full steam ahead with recent gazetted orders bringing the number of roads now under its watch to over 100.
Earlier this month Minister of Public Works, Juan Edghill, signed orders bringing Sophia Access Road, Robb Street, Water Street, Regent Street, America Street, Homestretch Avenue, Church Street and D’Urban Street among many others under the control of government.
Regent Street, Water Street and America Street are where a significant portion of the city of Georgetown’s commercial activity takes place and these now being wrested from the control of the council could see significant losses to it.
It was in March of this year that the takeovers began through a series of Ministry of Public Works gazetted orders, making the once council-controlled roads to be now managed by the government,.
Following the March takeover the APNU-led council had signalled its intention to challenge the decision in court.
City Mayor Alfred Mentore, had made this announcement during a press conference as he believed the decision of the government should not take effect.
The Ministry of Public Works had rejected the claims of Mentore that its initial decision was unlawful.
According to the Department of Public Information (DPI), the ministry argued that under the Municipal and District Councils Act, a road ceases to be a council road once it is designated a public road and that the Roads Act gives the Minister of Public Works the authority to designate and manage public roads.
The ministry also dismissed assertions that the government had “seized” municipal assets, contending that roads are public infrastructure and that the move amounts to a lawful reallocation of responsibility.
According to the ministry, the government acted after repeated appeals to City Hall to maintain the roads were ignored, resulting in deteriorating and, in some cases, hazardous conditions.
It further noted that central government invested approximately $40.7 billion in Georgetown’s roads and supporting infrastructure between 2020 and 2025, including expenditure on road rehabilitation, maintenance, drainage and enhancement works.
The ministry said the designation of the roads forms part of efforts to address traffic congestion, road conditions and the management of key transportation corridors and maintained that it remains open to engagement with the Georgetown Mayor and City Council.
The main opposition party, We Invest in Nationhood (WIN), had expressed concern over the move and argued that it raised questions about governance, transparency and adherence to the constitutional framework governing local government in Guyana.
In a statement, the party had said that while the action had been presented as an administrative or developmental intervention, it appeard to reflect a “gradual but deliberate centralisation of authority.”
WIN had contended that the apparent lack of meaningful consultation with the Georgetown Mayor and City Council was not merely an oversight but indicative of a pattern in which local democratic institutions are sidelined in decisions affecting their jurisdiction.
“Nothing in governance occurs in isolation; such actions are often precursors to broader shifts in control,” the party had said at the time.
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