Ministers visit Maracas to address vendors’ woes

Plastic lounge chairs for rental at Maracas beach. - File photo

Parliamentary Secretary in the Trade, Investment and Tourism. Ministry Dr Colin Neil Gosine, Defence Minister Wayne Sturge and Minister in the Ministry of Housing Phillip Edward Alexander visited Maracas beach to discuss the regularisation of rental vendors after a recent social media video showed a violent altercation.

“Maracas beach is controlled by the Tourism Ministry, however, the management of the vendors is controlled by Udecott.” said Gosine in a video of the tour posted to his Facebook page on August 17.

He said this includes bake and shark and umbrella, tent and chair vendors.

“There is no contract in place at this time between Udecott and the vendors so it needs to be regularised and a process needs to be put in place so that we can make sure this is operated better. A few people should be chosen in a proper manner and the company should be registered properly.

“Recently, we saw a video of a man being beaten badly on the beach and it’s something we’re here to look at and see how best we can make a change for the better.

Alexander told Sturge that national security needs to be involved in some way, suggesting the setting up of a police post near the beach.

He said a decision needs to be made about how the vendors are managed.

“Are they going to create a facility for them to operate out of? It can’t just be this. All over the beach you’ll see stockpiles of chairs and tents and a lot of people who come to the beach and have no interest in using tents and chairs have no option.”

Gosine said visitors of the beach, both local and tourists, faced extortion.

“There’s no peaceful enjoyment and it’s hundreds of dollars they charge for the tents and chairs.

Alexander said the infrastructure was another issue. He said one vendor has previously shown him around to shed light on the improper maintenance of the facilities.

He said he hoped the situation could be changed with the intervention of the Defence Ministry.

During the visit, Sturge said he had never seen the beach in such a state before and the first step will be to regularise the vending.

“If we allow it to continue it will be a shanty town, it’s an eyesore to be honest.”

Gosine said he also hopes to work with Works and Infrastructure Minister Jearlean John, who was not present at the visit

In a media release on August 15, Udecott strongly condemned the violence seen in a video of a man being beaten on Maracas beach on August 9.

Giving an overview of the issue, Udecott said that on December 24, 2018, it was contracted at Maracas beach by the tourism for facilities management services ministry.

“(The contract) included security, general maintenance and revenue collection from food and beverage vendors and providers of rentals of beach paraphernalia (chairs, umbrellas, tents),” the release said.

On January 23, 2019, Udecott met with a group of beach rental providers to determine the way forward for formal regulation.

The release said on July 27 and 28 2019, a request for Expression of Interest (EOI) for the rental items was advertised in a daily newspaper.

“However, on March 17 2020, the tourism ministry instructed Udecott to cease all revenue collection services with immediate effect. As a consequence, the EOI process to formally engage and regularise beach rental providers was also stopped.

“There was no further direction from the ministry to resume services.”

Udecott said its current role is to maintain the western public toilets and carpark, do general maintenance of the beach and vending booths and hire security for the beach

Udecott said it is not responsible for the issuance of vending permits or management of vendor contracts, including any beach rentals

To address public concerns, Udecott said it will immediately review security arrangements at the beach and take all reasonable steps to ensure public safety and security.

Udecott also intends to collaborate with the Trade Investment and Tourism ministry and the Homeland Security Ministry to address the regulation of rental beach items.

“The chairman assures the public that a comprehensive review is being undertaken to promptly improve security and determine the way forward.”

In a Facebook post on August 9, former tourism, culture and the arts minister Randall Mitchell said in all his years as minister, the violence shown in the video were never part of the Maracas beach experience.

“Management systems were put in place to ensure that safety, order and a welcoming environment for families were always maintained.”

In response to a Facebook post made by Alexander, which highlighted the violent video, Mitchell said, “Are these systems now dismantled? I trust the current minister with responsibility will act swiftly to restore order and security…I also hope there will come a point in time where minister Alexander would stop highlighting his administration’s failures with the promise to fix it and just get down and fix it. You are in charge now.”