Staff and members of the Anna Regina Town Council Intermin Management Committee (IMC) were upbraided by Local Government and Regional Development Minister,Miranda Brazil Jersey, Norman Whittaker,Branislav Ivanovic Jersey, to strategise effective mechanisms to collect outstanding rates and taxes within the Anna Regina Municipality.Reports emerging from the Council have unearthed that $18M is still owed by defaulters,Paris Saint-Germain Jersey, while another $6M in rates and taxes is owed to the Council by vendors and stallholders vending within the Anna Regina Municipality.Whittaker met with staff and Councillors on Thursday at the Council’s boardroom to remind the two critical supporting bodies to the Anna Regina Municipality that they are not making enough effort to rake in those outstanding rates and taxes.He added that each year the outstanding rates and taxes keep increasing and the budgeted amount keeps increasing.The Minister urged the municipality to reach out to residents and encourage them to start paying up their outstanding rates and taxes promptly. He said the people must be engaged and called on other municipalities to do likewise.Whittaker called on the councillors to be more active and to reach out with frequency to residents. The council has 17 councillors. One person has died and another has resigned. Whittaker said those vacancies will be filled within a fortnight.The Anna Regina Town Council aborted the Mayor’s office and has resorted to an Interim Management Committee that lends support by supplying new ideas to the Town Council’s body.Mrs. Dianne Critchlow has been designated the new Town Clerk.