Joseph’s acceptance of such a debate came Wednesday during a press conference in which he was pressed to have such an interaction so as to clear up certain aspects of a contract that in some ways has to do with the Ravine Chabot Road.
That road, after two years of the contract being signed, is now impassable to vehicles and has drawn the anger of residents who want the necessary authority to fix the road.
Minister Pierre, at a town hall type meeting with residents a few days ago said that government’s hands were tied where the road is concerned. He said that the UWP government went on a design and built agreement with the then government, meaning that the then government did not have the money to build the road however a contractor told the government that they will build the road for the government and the government would pay them later.
Pierre said that his government has no direct input in the road except in its supervision and to ensure that the road is built to specified standards. He said the terms and conditions under which the UWP government gave the contract to Asphalt and Mining to build roads in that area gave the government five years to repay with an interest rate of 5.50 and the payments are to commence three months after the issuance of the completion certificate.
Pierre said that the company had received certified payments of EC$6.5 million and has stopped all works on the road.
Pierre said that it is not through any fault of the government that the road is not fixed today. He added that the type of contract the government has with the contractor makes it clear that the government cannot break any terms of engagement in that contract. Should the government do that, the government would be found liable.
Joseph scoffed at that saying that the terms of the contract were changed by this government when it came into power. He said that his government did not tie the government when it came to the Ravine Chabot Road.
“I want to know whether the minister was deliberately misleading the people of Castries East by blaming the previous government for non-execution of the project or for saying that we tied them into a contract that they could get out of. Now when you have a situation of square pegs in round holes that’s what happens. The minister should seek advice from his technical people who can tell him,” Joseph said.
According to Joseph this was a one year contract November 2011 – November 2012.
“This year coming would be another year. You are telling the people of Saint Lucia that the United Workers Party put the government into a contractual arrangement that the contractor refuses to deliver on and that after two years you can do nothing as the minister to address the situation. I can give him a bit of advice, Joseph said.
No comments:
Post a Comment