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APNU questions safety of sunken MV Barima amidst tender documents for sweeping rehabilitation
(Kaieteur News) – The A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) has raised serious questions concerning the safety of the sunken MV Barima vessel in light of tender documents dated March 2026 pointing to need for sweeping rehabilitation works.
During its weekly press briefing on Friday, APNU Member of Parliament (MP) and shadow Minister of Public Works, Saiku Andrews said government’s own tender for the docking and rehabilitation of the MV Barima, published four months before the tragedy deserves careful examination.
APNU MP, Saiku Andrews
Andrews explained that, “The Bills of Quantities required the examination of approximately 10,000 square metres of hull plating and frames, with deteriorated sections to be renewed where necessary. It also called for the replacement of 3,000 kilograms of deteriorated longitudinal and transverse steel walls and frames, 2,000 kilograms of wasted hatch beams over the cargo hold, 30 zinc anodes, 150 metres of fire lines, 20 air vents, 180 square metres of hatch-cover tarpaulin, and ultrasonic gauging of the hull with a detailed thickness test report.”
Of equal importance, item 16 identifies approximately 10,000 square metres of hull plating and frames for examination. The Parliamentarian pointed out that this appears unusually large for a vessel of that size. To this end, Andrews noted that if that quantity is correct, the government should explain what it represents and if it is not, the government should explain how it came to appear in a safety-critical procurement document.
More importantly, the MP argued that government’s own engineers identified the need to examine the hull, replace deteriorated steel, replace wasted hatch beams, replace zinc anodes, service critical components and carry out ultrasonic thickness testing only months before the tragedy.
As such, he questioned, “Who concluded that the MV Barima was fit to continue carrying passengers on a 24-hour Atlantic voyage? Was the rehabilitation contract awarded? Was the work completed? Was it inspected and accepted? If not, who authorised the vessel to continue operating? Did the engineers determine that the vessel was seaworthy, or was that decision made by someone else?”
Meanwhile, APNU urged that Minister of Public Utilities and Aviation, Deodat Indar accept responsibility as his portfolio includes the Maritime Administration Department (MARAD) which is responsible for maritime inspection and safety enforcement.
He was adamant that MARAD cannot be allowed to investigate its own regulatory conduct without independent oversight as the party called for an independent probe, supported by qualified external maritime investigators, naval architects, marine engineers and accident-reconstruction specialists.
Andrews insisted that the investigation must examine the actions and omissions of the Transport and Harbours Department, MARAD, the vessel management, crew and the ministers responsible. The inquiry, he said, must also examine the events after the vessel experienced difficulties.
He explained, “Reports indicate that the initial distress signal was received by the Timehri Air Traffic Control Tower. If that is correct, several questions arise. Was there any two-way communication with the vessel after its distress signal was received? Who coordinated the rescue operation? What rescue assets were deployed immediately? Why did it reportedly take approximately three and a half hours before an effective rescue response reached the vessel? These questions go directly to the adequacy of Guyana’s maritime emergency response system.”
APNU stated that every passenger record, ticketing document, cargo manifest, surveillance recording, maintenance file, dry-docking report, inspection certificate, crew-testing result, radio communication and emergency-response log must be immediately preserved.
The party has called for the publication of the vessel’s complete inspection, seaworthiness, maintenance and certification records; full disclosure of the actual passenger and cargo-loading arrangements; continuous financial, medical, psychological and funeral support for affected families and immediate reforms to passenger ticketing, manifests, cargo weighing, crew testing and maritime inspection, in keeping with best practices.
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