The controversial nature of contracts at the Ministry of Education

Jun 11, 2019 Letters

DEAR EDITOR,

I pen this letter to highlight the controversial nature of how contracts are being handled at the Ministry of Education, particularly by the Head of Buildings Mr. Ron Eastman. Indeed, I find it ironic that after his troubled career as Deputy City Engineer including suspension by the council (in another section of the media, September 26, 2017), Mr. Eastman somehow found himself in charge of the engineering division of a much larger government agency.
It appears that Mr. Eastman remains the same person when it comes to competence but with no oversight to sanction him. There have been several instances for example where other contractors and and I who have completed works at the Ministry scheduled meetings with Mr. Eastman only to turn up and have him walk past, making a loud statement that he is not meeting anybody. This is with him being fully aware that contractors are indebted to others, while he continues to withhold payments after months of completing (in my case payments for petty jobs done over five months ago) the job.
What I have found even more questionable is the fact that these jobs are now primarily given to contractors who previously worked with the Mayor and City Council and more than 60% of the contractors who worked with the Ministry of Education are now shut out of contracts from that agency. It’s not to say that I don’t expect other contractors to be given jobs but to shut out 60% of us when we have all the necessary documentation and accept new people because of seeming familiarity is a grave injustice being handed down to us.
I solemnly believe that many of these issues are facilitated through poor management by the superiors of this Ministry. There is much talk about integrating Information Communication Technology (ICT) into teaching and learning processes of the Education System but wouldn’t a good place to start be with the staff of the Ministry? Currently, in trying to do business with them you walk from office to office before completing one transaction.
Then there are the bills that this Ministry issues. I would suggest that the Minister take some time to set up a team to assess the type of bills leaving this Ministry because it is quite obvious that Mr. Hinds and his Procurement Department are not doing a proper job. What I have found with several bills is the fact that the bills are so flawed that upon purchase, on numerous occasions, staff of their Procurement Department would have to call you to collect a new bill in exchange for the faulty document that they gave you initially. Now, mind you, these bills leave Mr. Eastman’s office and pass through Mr. Hinds office through rigorous processing yet still we read weeding and cleaning bills asking for VAT certificates and electrical compliance; or petty work bills asking for 15 years’ experience.
I am not one to bash ministers or the government but I would close by recommending that Minister N. Henry pay a little more attention to her Ministry because quite a lot is spiraling out of control which would not have been the case if competent people were doing the work that we the taxpayers pay for.
I now close by stating that I hope other Guyanese like me would spend some time shedding light on the injustices that we receive at the hands of our fellow Guyanese, for it begs the question with oil on the way, will it get any better for us?

Regards,
Concerned Citizen

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