Latest update December 23rd, 2024 3:40 AM
PPP/C “gifted” $$M tug and barge to Kwakwani supporter
Minister of Public Infrastructure, David Patterson
…“We recovered the barge and leased it to the NDC”- Patterson
The APNU+AFC government has been able to recover a barge that the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) had handed over to one of its supporters in Kwakwani.
Alliance For Change (AFC) Member of Parliament (MP) Audwin Rutherford, highlighted this yesterday at the party’s press conference. He said that the residents of Kwakwani are happy that the community can once again benefit from the barge.
“The barge is now in the hands of the NDC (Neighbourhood Democratic Council) and they are doing a fantastic job managing the operations of the barge. People are getting employed due to the operation; and the money is coming into the coffers of the NDC instead of into the pocket of one PPP supporter.”
It was AFC’s David Patterson who recovered the barge. Patterson, as Minister of Public Infrastructure, had to pull out all the stops to get the barge back. He told the media yesterday that he found out about the barge when he and Minister of Natural Resources, Raphael Trotman made their first ministerial visit to Kwakwani.
“There was a town hall meeting and the residents of Kwakwani were adamant that the barge, which used to be used by a bauxite company, should be handed over to them.”
Patterson said that there and then he made a commitment to the people of the community. “I told them that I will look into it.”
He said that the “privatization” happened under the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL).
Patterson said that he approached NICIL in an effort to get information on the barge and on the privatization process “and I will be very frank, NICIL has no information; none whatsoever.”
The Minister said that he resorted to contacting the former NICIL Director, “that same Winston Brassington who was overseas at the time. He directed me to where I could have found the information on the barge.
Patterson said that it was so he learnt that the barge was leased on a contract that was coming to an end later 2015.
The Minister said that he instructed that the contract should not be renewed.
Cabinet subsequently handed the barge over to the Ministry of Public Infrastructure.
AFC MP, Audwin Rutherford
“Then MARAD and the Demerara Harbour Bridge Company did some rehabilitative work free of cost.”
Patterson said that the barge is now being leased to the NDC for a dollar a year and the council is enjoying gains of over $1.5M monthly from the operations of the barge.
Rutherford was keen to note that the barge used to be accompanied by a tug. However the tug was gifted to the same PPP supporter, so the government was not able to recover it.
Kaieteur News understands that several other barges belonging to the State were handed to supporters of the PPP/C across the country.
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