Procurement scrutiny blamed for overgrown bushes
Unprecedented scrutiny on the BVI may have left officials troubled on how to approach traditional landscaping efforts and the general upkeep of the territory which had often been outsourced to unemployed residents in the past.
That scrutiny came as a result of a damning Commission of Inquiry (COI) report on the state of the BVI’s governance and left in its wake a serious threat to the BVI’s semi-autonomy as well as numerous governance reform recommendations.
Lawmakers complained bitterly for months last year about the state of sidewalks and roadways where unkempt bushes protruded for miles on end, forcing pedestrians and even drivers to take evasive measures as they navigated the territory’s roadways.
But the annual bush-cutting contracts never materialised, despite the many pleas and urging by legislators in the House of Assembly.
But with the government’s newly implemented Registration Apprenticeship Training Employment and Development (RATED) Programme now in place, an explanation has been offered for delays to the ongoing beautification exercise.
During a recent press conference, Premier Dr Natalio Wheatley reminded the public why the bush on the roadsides had become overgrown in the last few months.
According to Dr Wheatley, the government’s procurement process had come under scrutiny with concerns raised on the issuance of bush-cutting contracts.
“We had to halt the issue of those contracts which supplemented the labour force for roadside maintenance. We were left with a gap while a new system was developed and implemented to get this work done,” he stated.
The Premier explained that the new RATED Programme is a lot more transparent and will allow more persons to benefit from these kinds of opportunities than under the previous system.
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Bush cutting contracts for votes and back kicks don’t cut it any more. Why not buy proper road side cutting equipment for PWD guys?
Write up a job bid spec (what needs doing, where, when, how often, expected standard of performance, deliverables etc) and put it out to bid, requiring a bid bond.
MEANWHILE ONLY THE BUSHES IN HIS DISTRICT ARE BEING CUT
Get equipment which will allow for easy cutting of the bush. Stupid to use machetes and very slow.
Any hour of the day just take a peek in the ghetto,Lyndon bar, big Brothers shed and many other hide out, there you will find guys who can be used on a consistent basis to cut the roadside. Whether we want to admit it or not it boil to bad management……
How difficult would it be to come up with a plan to cut bush? Excuse after excuse to do basic tasks..
It is the responsibility of the Minister of Public Works to make sure the periodic cutting is in each years budget and that the paper work has been processed, bids vetted, the the contractors are performing properly. That he doesn’t have the management expertise for this position is apparent as the infrastructure has deteriorated under his management; roads, water, sewerage, etc.
We must have ministers with actual experience and the commitment to fulfill their responsibilities.
Aha, sadly that requires some logical thinking, which, as I have seen for many years, does not really exist here. BVI method, shoot first, aim later!
IT IS A NATIONAL DISGRACE TO HAVE THE COUNTRY IN THIS STATE DURNING THE HEIGHT OF A TOURIST SEASON.
IN THE 2ND DISTRACT IS LIKE DRIVING THROUGH A CORN FIELD. ALREADY NARROW ROADS WITH OVERGROWN BUSHES.
EVERYONE HAS A EXCUSE. THEY ARE ALL A SET OF…..
Public works can’t deal with this? This is crazy When it takes 30 of them to plug hole in the road. They have the man power just not the willingness to work
Well, well, well, well! What have we come to? How far did we really progress? What in the world,if they are seeing and speaking, are our ancestors saying about us and the UK for that matter.
We can’t get bush cut no more unless uk gives permission? really? What kinda sh88 is that?
Does the UK have so much control over our financial system that they can turn off the tap and stop general items such as bush cutting from occuring?
That does not look good forus or them
We from here ,so we are entitled
don’t get lower than your chief saying cuttin weeds too much logistics for the gov. too hard to do what goats do, without a $400 MILLION BUDGET. sad.
only in the bvi was bush cutting turned into corruption by our district reps so now we have to go thru bureaucracy to get a simple task done. damn shame.
Sosososo true