BVI News

‘Unavoidable expense’: Gov’t spends nearly $50K renting A/C unit for 10 weeks

The Multipurpose Sports Complex in Road Town

Government has spent nearly $50,000 to rent an air-conditioning unit for the Multipurpose Sports Complex in Road Town for two-and-a-half months.

Education and Culture Minister Dr Natalio Wheatley said, in the first instance, his ministry rented the unit from May 25 to July 25, which came at the cost of $40,000.

It was again rented for an additional two weeks to facilitate the Miss BVI Pageant. This second rental came at a cost of $9,500.

“Renting this A/C system was unavoidable because it would have been impossible to host the dozens of events that were hosted in the Multipurpose Complex, including the cheerleading competition for primary and secondary schools, the H Lavity Stoutt Community College graduation, the Althea Scatliffe Primary School and the Elmore Stoutt High School graduations, the Gen Y Factor, Summer Sizzle, the Prince and Princess Show, the VIBE release party, among other events. I would say this is value for money to the taxpayers,” Dr Wheatley said.

Wheatley was responding to questions from Opposition Leader Marlon Penn at the Sixth Sitting of the First Session of the Fourth House of Assembly recently.

The facility’s personal airconditioning unit was damaged during the 2017 hurricanes.

“The single unit which was working prior to the passage of the hurricanes was brought back online to facilitate the First Sitting of the House after the most recent elections but failed to work two days after,” he remarked.

New AC system coming

Dr Wheatley further said a new air conditioning system is now being purchased for the facility.

“We have been advised by the original vendor that the system would be better replaced than repaired due to the extent of the damage. I have made a request for the replacement of the A/C in the upcoming budget,” he said.

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29 Comments

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  1. Lost Nation says:

    The whole process makes one just want to break down and cry. If we as individuals ran our companies or homes like this we’d be a distant memory broke and mocked! But those we elect to protect us spend our money like drunken sailors without public input, no apparent logical oversight, or culpability.

    I was thinking will driving the roads over the festival holidays and seeing how much the previous administration put in the roads and see the wasted incompetence as a single set of rain showers and relegated our roads once again to a disgrace. I must have watched them pathetically patch the road from the community college to Hodges Creek so many times and for every little rain to render the place a disgrace. Yet again and again they just patch it up like they are doing us a favour. This is just a microcosm of the was our Government does things – have assed, over priced, incompetence, and indifference!

    I do not blame VIP for the current state of the roads. We know who is responsible and should be held accountable but he’ll slip away like he always does. I hope our current Work Minister sees this and takes our infrastructure seriously. Do it right the first time so you don’t waste our money over and over again on PWD patch jobs.

    How can we change this? How can we legitimately get a Government that actually gives a s**t about doing things right?

    Like 39
    Dislike 7
    • Agree says:

      On the roads issue we just had a company here that resurfaced the airport runway and had the capability of providing top quality roads. We should have taken advantage of that opportunity instead of wasting away the publics money to the same incompetent firm

      We must improve our public infrastructure.

      Like 22
      Dislike 1
    • Jamal says:

      Things would be better with that whistleblower law we was promised.

      • Norman says:

        Why is our country ranked as one of the worst in the whole wide world in terms of corruption and lack of transparency?

        We are a small country. Why can’t we get control of this? If all the money that has been stolen from us in the past 20 years had been spent on improving our education system and infrastructure we would we be the jewel of the Caribbean.

        https://www.transparency.org/country/VGB

  2. Clearly says:

    Everything you do in the BVI to try to help situations better is a problem. What a set of ungrateful people.

    Like 6
    Dislike 11
  3. SMDH says:

    I don’t see what the fuss is because the same tax payers benefiting

    Like 5
    Dislike 5
  4. @Lost Nation says:

    Some of what you said is valid but there’s alot of positive in our V.I. also so don’t just look for the negative because you will only find what you are looking for.

    Like 7
    Dislike 2
  5. By time says:

    It was by time something was done in the temporary

    Like 1
    Dislike 1
  6. Anonymous says:

    Everything single initiative appear so exorbitantly over-priced. One can only wonder, minus the greed, if there aren’t actual pillfering occuring.

    Like 18
    Dislike 1
  7. Windy says:

    I wonder which politician they rented from ?

    Like 14
    Dislike 1
  8. What says:

    Da dont make sense the same way they hook it up to rent a bill or qoute could have been done to pay them later for it rather than renting strupes you all kno how to give people money n collect some back you all self

  9. Spock says:

    Indeed, Captain Wheatley

    Are we to believe that the facilities department cannot repair and maintain an AC unit in a public building? Fascinating.

    Like 15
  10. What says:

    The same way you can make provisions to rent without putting it in a budget is the same way ubwas to take leader ship and make best decision for country. But u choose give way unplaned money but now want talk bout money budget for ac in bill niggro pls. Small money but u dropped the ball. U woold of been praise paying for it over renting that cost more

    Like 5
    Dislike 1
  11. bernie mac says:

    how much that ac cost if the rent chalk up to 50k

  12. Anonymous says:

    As a Tortolian/BVIslander, i feel so much shame knowing that we cannot produce engineers except on paper, that can properly design and produce our roads, and produce and maintain maintainance departments that can maintain a simple air condition unit.

    Many systems and departments of this government need complete over-hauling, refurbishing, down streaming, down sizing, getting rid of and remodelling to produce.

    Most are not producing shit, even those with supposedly high and doctorate qualificationsat their head.

    Look at the state and condition of our country. It is shameful!

    Like 15
  13. Ken says:

    Maybe just maybe that $50,000.00 could have repaired the old A/C units! Follow the money trail, my guess it will go back to some connection to an employee or family member.

  14. Father God Help Us says:

    Wow! Y’all this Government and the Premier needs prayers. Next thing I’d say is: can God be mocked? For those leaders who think they will go in there and do what they want to do…think again. God has His Hand on this nation because He loves the people. If the leaders think they will Fleece us and hoodwink us they have another thing coming. God Himself will deal with them. When they think they are hiding from us, God is seeing everything and read the Bible and see what happened to leaders who did wickedly in the sight of God. Look and See. But Church get back on your knees. We wrestle not against flesh and blood.

  15. Paying cronies? says:

    Is this why they want to tax expat for moneygram and western union transfers? OH HOW I WISH THESE POLITICIANS WOULD SPEND OUR MONEY LIKE THEY SPEND THEIR OWN.

  16. Duh says:

    Overall as it covered so many events that is a good thing BUT how much do those events pay for the use of the building? Summer Sizzle and Vibe release event are both commercial events and should be paying $$$.
    HLSCC no longer has a tent so that saved money in not buying a new one in this budget cycle.
    But IRMA was 2 years ago… why is everything taking so long to fix?

  17. vip heckler says:

    This A/C repair man ran on the VIP ticket before so do the maths

    • @ vip heckler says:

      Support for a political is normal.

      The ascension of that political party to political power is dependent upon one variable, the consent the majority of the populace.

      Unfortunately, the majority voting populace is not affroded a glimpse into the personal motivations, political and economic motivations and other of the candidates that presents themselvess during that election time.

      The current politically successful candidates mode of operation is me, myself and i.

      The philosophy, predessors before have done the same, i will also.

      The notion of genuinely helping others on all levels, except for the donors and riich, are the insurmountable human and political challenges for them.

  18. Lack of journalism says:

    So often in our main news sources the vital and relevant information is missing. There is no analysis in this report as to how reasonable or not the cost is. What is the real cost of air conditioning a premises of that size when the equipment is bought? If 50k is a substantial portion of what it ought to be to buy/import, then there is something serious going on and the police and anti-corruption authorities should be reviewing. If not, there’s not really a story. Otherwise, this is just innuendo.

  19. Anonymous says:

    A money watching corruption watch committe is desperately needed to watch and hold this current group of elected officials to seious accountability.

    Four months in and the populace confidence is already low.

  20. Just saying says:

    When youu get the air fix please fix the floor. I understand it being a multi purpose center but we still have to protect the basketball floor. There is no reason why we can’t host events like paradise jam for basketball teams. We are so behind in sports as it is with so much talent going to waste. We need to invest in our youth and take care of what we have. If there are events cover the floors so it won’t be damage.

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