City Hall outlines plan for enhancement funding from Gov’t

Aug 14, 2008 News

City Hall is yet to receive an assured sum of $15M from the government which is intended to help complete enhancement works which had commenced as part of the preparation for Carifesta X.

According to Deputy Mayor Robert Williams, the President had made contact with the municipality yesterday and reiterated that assistance would be afforded the council, thus works are continuing on credit until the funds are handed over by the Ministry of Finance. Williams’s disclosure came yesterday during an impromptu press briefing at City Hall.

In brief remarks, he said that the municipality has commenced an ongoing enhancement drive towards the Carifesta period, noting that all equipment as well as manpower in all of the various municipal departments has been engaged.

This he said was intended to ensure that the municipality is able to execute enhancement and re-enforce the by-laws to ensure that the improvements made remain intact for the period of the grand event and beyond.

Williams said that although only the best efforts were engaged, the municipal cash flow did not allow it to respond to the necessities in a timely manner.

“By this I mean we could not provide the fuel for the trucks to work, the additional tools, the overtime and the supplies for the public health section.

So we were summoned to a meeting by His Excellency the President to discuss the progress of the enhancement drive.”

At that forum, Williams said, efforts were made to outline to the President urgent needs of the municipality on which basis he (the President) agreed to provide a grant of $15M to continue the programme with much more pace.

And according to the Deputy Mayor the money will be utilised in a number of areas as the enhancement process moves forward.

He disclosed that $1.7M of the funds will be directed to the purchase of urgent spare parts for equipment and vehicles so that within days, two dump trucks, one back hoe, one tractor and one welding plant will become operable to be put in the enhancement exercise.

Another $5M, he said, will go towards fuel and lubricants, noting that while the council has working equipment and vehicles the needful energy to operate them is not available due to financial constraints.

“Our budget for fuel and lubricant has been exhausted for the entire year although we are only midway in the year. This is so because of the excess pumping that had to be done, excess utilisation of the excavators, equipment and transportation of the night trucks.”

With the expected funding, Williams said that fuel and lubricants will be provided for the outfall pumps, the excavators, the brush cutters which the drainage workers have to use and the mobile generator together with two tractors.

A sum of $500,000 will be utilised to procure tools urgently required by the roads and drainage section, blades for the slashers, ‘cat guts’, cutlasses, rakes, files and protective masses.

The maximum of $1.5M will be used to procure spray cans, insecticides and lubricants for vehicles that will be engaged in moving at least eight public health workers who are tasked with addressing the infestation of mosquitoes and flies in the city.

Williams said that the municipality has found that in order to finish the enhancement work in reasonable time for Carifesta workers will have to work beyond the normal hours of work thus a total of $4M has been budgeted for overtime.

One million dollars will also cover the cost to hire four trucks for about four weeks to facilitate a process of garbage collection, removal of obstacles, transporting items and other activities.

Another $1.8M will be used to hire two or three project teams that will work on alleyways effecting immediate action should it rain, in order to remove any blockages that could prevent the smooth movement of water in the drainage system.

All of the works, Williams said, will be overseen by a special task force consisting of the Deputy Mayor, the City Engineer, the Deputy City Engineer, the Town Clerk, the Treasurer, the Procurement Officer, the Public Relations Officer and a representative of the Constabulary.