Bar owners begin legal action over earlier closing times

THE Barkeepers and Operators Association of TT (BOATT) has made good on threats to take legal action over amended covid19 public health regulations which moved the closing time for bars from 10 pm to 8 pm.

In a pre-action protocol letter sent to Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh on Monday, attorneys Anand Ramlogan SC, Renuka Rambhajan, Ganesh Saroop, and Douglas Bayley contended the regulations are unconstitutional and discriminatory.

They intend to seek compensation and several declarations.

The letter was sent on behalf of Jenny Nandhani Pooran, owner of Lulu’s Bar at Carnbee, Tobago.

Saroop said Pooran was forced to close her bar on March 15 and reopened on June 22, when the regulations allowed for the reopening of bars.

He said the three-month shutdown caused her tremendous financial hardship.

And although she was relieved to restart her business on June 22 and open until 10 pm, instead of the usual “any day, any time’ which she was accustomed to do, within a week the regulations were amended for bars to close earlier because of the errant ways of some bars.

The attorney said the 10 pm restriction was already making it difficult for Pooran and the new closing time has now negatively compounded the situation.

He complained it was done without consultation with BOATT and no medical information was released by the Chief Medical Officer to suggest that the new operating times would have any impact on the spread of covid19.

Saroop also said the Executive’s powers under the public health ordinance were no longer applicable and there was no justification for it since TT’s borders remain closed and there is no community spread cases, only imported ones.

“If the Executive wishes to make a law which infringes the rights enshrined in section 4, it cannot do so by delegated legislation. It must put the regulations before Parliament for it to be passed by a special majority,” the attorney contended.

The letter also said even if the regulations were constitutionally valid, the sudden change to closing hours for bars was discriminatory since restaurants with bars were not included.

Saroop said there was no law on physical distancing, but, nonetheless, BOATT took the precautionary measure to advise its members to demarcate tables and chairs in a manner consistent with physical distancing.

He also said the association’s members have also observed a lack of physical distancing at some restaurants with bars. Several were named in the letter.

Saroop pointed out that in the recent past, there has been a noticeable change in the behavioral patterns of citizens who are mingling freely without masks, and candidates in the upcoming general elections have also been seen campaigning in large groups.

“The enforced premature closure is, therefore in effect, a form of artificial socio-economic engineering by the government as it is forcing and re-channeling our client’s customers into the restaurants and bars owned by big businesses as compared to the average man/woman who owns and operates a small bar. Many of these establishments are in fact owned by the ‘one percent economic elite’ and is a repeat of an economically distorted policy that previously saw the closure of doubles and corn soup vendors.”

The minister was given until Wednesday to respond.