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Education Minister puts contracting firm on notice for delays in St. Rose’s High
Kaieteur News – The Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand, has asserted that she will not accept the “mediocrity” in the underperformance of Courtney Benn Contracting Services Limited. Because of these deficiencies, the Education Minister has since put the contractor on notice for its “severe” delays in the construction of the $352M St. Rose’s High School and a dormitory for the Linden Technical Institute.
Minister of Education Priya Manickchand and team engaging the representatives from the contracting firm.
Yesterday, Minister Manickchand met with Courtney Benn, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the firm, along with engineers in his team. There, Minister Manickchand expressed her deep concern regarding lack of movement on the project, which was awarded two years ago and has thus far cost taxpayers GY $60M.
The contract for the construction of the new building was awarded in 2018, but was delayed due to a change in the initial design, which was set to include a pile foundation. However, since 85% of piles were driven in February, no substantial work has been executed at the location. In fact, the contractor abandoned the construction of the school, according to the school’s Board of Governors on September 8.
The Board had further observed that the contractor, in “a peculiar move”, refused to make their work plan public or submit it to the school when requested.
“Further the contractor,” the Board wrote in their statement, “sought to prevent the contracting entity (the Ministry of Education) from holding regular stakeholder consultation update meetings with the Board or any other stakeholders, which is vital for a project of this nature, size and complexity, as it allows for smooth execution of works, while keeping all informed of the issues and concerns arising from construction.”
The contracting service had avoided giving a justification for their abandonment of the prestigious project, despite numerous attempts made by Kaieteur News. Attempts were even made to request the phone number of the engineer responsible for the construction of the school, but employees refused to do so.
Minister Manickchand conveyed her disappointment over the snail’s pace in the construction of the school and further commented that it is a “disservice to the nation’s children” that a state-of-the-art building that was scheduled for completion in August 2021 will now have to be further delayed due to the contractor’s inefficiency.
With this, the Manickchand indicated to the firm’s CEO that the Ministry will now have to make “tough decisions” if his agency does not provide a satisfactory solution into the school’s construction.
The design of the new school, which was founded some 170 years ago, contains retained features which have been enhanced, including the internal courtyard, green space, garden feature, enhanced canteen and dining area, off-street drop off, pickup and parking via an internal driveway, wheelchair access to all levels via an elevator, a large 1,500-seat internal auditorium with stage and a separate audio/visual monitoring and control room, a new internal Physical Education Department, and a new Information Technology Laboratory.
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