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Many issues dominated the news this past week. All of them were worthy of a commentary or at least some discussion. For example, there was the return of Donald Trump to the presidency of the United States. Many people voted for him despite his propensity for skewing the facts. His often crude and shocking comments did nothing to deter his supporters. There were those who offered reasons for his re-election. His felony convictions notwithstanding, they expressly preferred him to a woman.
In fact, Kamala Harris was the second woman to challenge him for the presidency and lose. Before her there was Hillary Clinton. The conclusion was that the United States is not yet ready for a woman president.
Others pointed to the migrant situation. The Americans in some cities claimed that the migrants were being provided with money that could have gone to American citizens. They spoke of schools being commandeered forcing their children to remain at home. Some migrants did not help the situation. They indulged in criminal activities that cost the states and the cities. Some simply moved into vacant homes. Donald Trump promised mass migration. Ironically, all those targeted for deportation are not white.
One can rest assured that the migrants from Europe would not feature in Trump’s mass deportation plan. That speaks volumes for the drive for America to remain a white country. Some have openly decried the changing face of the country. The talk of diversity being good for the country is not on their agenda. Many Guyanese would surely be caught up in this mass deportation plan. Some are already worried.
It must be noted that while most heads of state refrained from congratulating Trump, perhaps until after his inauguration, Guyana was among the first with both President Irfaan Ali and Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo offering fulsome praise in their congratulatory messages. Vice President Jagdeo was quick to announce that he would court Trump on what he considered lies being peddled about Guyana in the United States.
But there was a bigger issue. It had to do with contracts for various projects. For as long as the government has been in office there have been complaints about the award of contracts. Contracts are awarded to anyone who has a close affinity to the government.
There was the contract awarded to a company named Tepui for some $800 million. A well was supposed to be dug and the project should have been completed by now. It goes without saying that no work has been attempted.
Another contract was awarded to a group of entertainers for the construction of a school. By the entertainers’ own admission, they may not know about construction but they do know how to manage money. Despite Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo reporting that the school had been constructed evidence supported by videos and photographs reveal otherwise. That project is nearly two years overdue.
There was the construction of the North Ruimveldt Multilateral School. The contractor had previously been sanctioned for works on a school in the hinterland. At the sod turning of the North Ruimveldt Multilateral School project the Education Minister read the riot act to the contractor. She secured a promise that the school would be completed on time. It is way past the deadline and this contract is still to be completed.
There was the road through Le Repentir Cemetery that took forever and the recruitment of other contractors for its completion.
Other projects include the construction of a 12-storey Brickdam Police Station and a 12-storey Works Ministry complex aback of Eccles. The mobilization fees totaling billions of dollars have already been paid. Neither of these contracts is being undertaken.
Just Tuesday, a contractor stated that he bid for the contracts for City Hall and the Bamia school. He lost out on both. The City Hall contract went to a Trinidadian company. He said that he would have finished both, on time, and on budget.
City Hall is still surrounded by mesh and scaffolding. The contractor concluded that from appearances he is branded PNC, hence persona non grata. And that is the crux of the matter. Many excellent contractors have been ignored because of political expediency.
So it was that when President Ali decided to rouse his Ministers, Permanent Secretaries, the engineers and the consultants for a sunrise meeting on Tuesday, the news rang out. The failure of the contractors to even complete one project on time and without cost overruns must have really stung him.
The meeting was torrid. Some said that the President had an opportunity to fire some people on the spot. At least one Minister turned up late. Some contractors were also late. Whether the foreign contractors were present is not known.
The reality is that the president has only himself to blame. The contract award system is so skewed that even contractors who were blacklisted were awarded contracts. Most did not have the requisite skills, hence substandard work. The consultants have the power to force remedial action on the job. Most of the time they do not but are quick to certify payments.
Bribery plays an extremely important role in the award of contracts. Some at the top must get their cut thus reducing the contractor’s profit margin. The contractor is forced to collect his profit from the project. Then there are those who have no equipment to undertake works but who bid nevertheless. If awarded they must wait on the contractor who is using his equipment elsewhere, hence the completion delay.
Above all, there are those contractors who are awarded multiple contracts but who can only undertake one at a time. And the president has expressed his anger over contract delays. Some contractors must be smiling because they don’t expect any penalties despite the meeting.
