Latest update December 23rd, 2024 3:40 AM
Promoters miss third deadline to complete $346M Bamia Primary School
Works ongoing in April on the Bamia Primary School.
Kaieteur News – Entertainers and football promoters turn building contractors have missed a third deadline to complete the $346 million Bamia Primary School project in Region 10.
The contract was handed to a company called St8ment Investment Inc. that was formed some six months prior to being handed the contract. The school was expected to be completed by this month, but Kaieteur News was told works are only at 75 percent completed.
During a telephone interview with this publication on Monday, the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) of Region 10 Chairman, Deron Adams said that during a visit to the project site with his team this month, a number of works were yet to be completed on the building. He shared that works such as electrical works, installment of several windows, completion of ceiling, corrective works to some walls, painting of interior and completion to exterior were yet to be done. When asked if there was yet a third extension issued to the contractor to finish the school, the Chairman disclosed that the region’s Regional Executive Officer (REO) Dwight John had written to the Ministry of Finance for approval on an extension.
Expressing his dissatisfaction with the slothfulness of the project, Adams said all they are hoping for is that the school to be completed soonest so as to eliminate the challenges students from the Bamia community are currently facing. “The issue is that because of the distance children have to walk from the Bamia area all the way to Amelia’s Ward Primary; it is a challenge for them. The delay of this school is bringing more hardship on them,” he expressed.
Another issue he stated as a result of this delay is that “if this project is not completed this year, it means that it would affect region’s 10 budgetary allocations because you have to keep rolling the money over to complete that school, when that money could have been allocated to doing another project.” “We can’t allow the incompetence of one company to bring the entire RDC and the representation that we have made over the past couple of months or years into disrepute because of a contractor’s failure to execute it in timeline, that is my biggest concern,” the RDC Chairman commented.
Earlier this year, the Committee of Supply of the National Assembly approved a sum $7.163 billion to roll out programmes and projects for Region 10. From that amount, the government has set aside a provision of $375 million for schools, educational facilities and payment of retention under the Region’s education programme.
It was then, Minister of Local Government and Regional Development, Sonia Parag revealed that out of that amount some $127 million will go towards completing the school. Kaieteur News had reported that the contract for the school was signed back in November 2021 with St8ment Investment. St8ment Investment Inc. was incorporated in March of 2021 and its principals are Rawle Ferguson and Kerwin Bollers of Hits and Jams Entertainment along with Aubrey ‘Shanghai’ Major and Kashif Muhammed of the Kashif and Shanghai football tournament. At the time of the signing, the project was expected to be completed within 20 months, that being completed by July 2023.
However, the contractor was not able to finish the project, and was given a new deadline of November 2023 to complete the works. That deadline also passed and the works appeared to have stalled. At the consideration of budget this year, the Minister was asked by the members of the Opposition about the school, to which she announced that the school will be completed for April 1, 2024.
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