Walwyn insists COI conclusions on ESHS wall are unfounded
Former Education Minister in the previous NDP government, Myron Walwyn has argued that some of the Commission of Inquiry (COI) report’s determinations regarding the Elmore Stoutt High School (ESHS) wall project are baseless.
While Walwyn was willing to admit to procedural flaws, he vehemently denied that there was any level of corruption or dishonesty involved.
According to a recent Facebook post made by the former legislator: “There was nothing that remotely resembled dishonesty or corruption that emerged from the testimony of the witnesses who worked on the project.”
Wrong policy?
The former legislator said he felt those procedural flaws never rose to any level of criminality and called any such suggestion “unfounded and manifestly unjust”.
Furthermore, Walwyn shared that it was government ministries’ policy over the years, whether right or wrong, that when a contract was under $10,000, no trade license or good standing certificate, etcetera were required to execute projects.
“If this is in fact the wrong policy being used then it is a systemic flaw that needs to be corrected urgently throughout the entire service,” Walwyn said. “But to suggest that there was a departure from what obtained with respect to the project is completely disingenuous.”
Payments made without work
Regarding the suggestion that payments were made to contractors on the project without work being done, the former legislator insisted that this issue was being taken out of context.
“This is something I have heard before and I can categorically say that this is misleading information at best,“ Walwyn offered.
He noted that four contractors received “mobilization” to purchase their supplies before the then National Democratic Party (NDP) government decided to pull the plug on all government projects at that time.
Walwyn explained that the project did not resume up to the time of an audit conducted by the Auditor General’s Office and said these contractors, through no fault of their own, were not given the opportunity to execute their portion of the project before that assessment.
“This is not the same as saying that contractors received money and did not work. To my knowledge, these contractors remain committed to upholding their contractual obligation,“ Walwyn stated.
He expressed regret and frustration that the management process for such projects within government is not more widely understood and suggested it is often likely ignored for the sake of succinct or possibly sensationalised reporting.
“Unfortunately, this well-intended process that could be viewed as nefarious, especially when evaluated outside of context, has become the source of confusion and misrepresentation,” Walwyn stated.
Walwyn said he agreed with some of the recommendations that were in the COI report and said he saw the need for a change in some of the current practices in place.
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Where is his evidence or counter report, addressing the mismanagement of the wall, to the COI report. He who asserts must prove.
So now the law is that who you have called guilty must prove he is not guilty? What is the BVI coming to. If you accuse somebody of something you have to prove it.
Did you even read the report? From your comment, it appears as though you have not. When someone challenges your decisions in writing, providing details, then the subject has a responsibility to respond in kind.
The wall cost $1000 per foot and not finished. That wall anywhere in the world is $10-$15 per sq ft. A 10 ft high wall at the upper cost would be $150 per foot. Walwyn you are so smart, please explain where $850 per foot went? No wrong doing? Really? Give the Brits time as you are going down for the thief you and your architect buddy are.
As the more erudite member of his party when it comes to procedures and laws, it is a stretch to believe his procedural flaws were anything but intentional. More believable as egotistical flaws!
Now they all claim incompetence. Voters take note. Don’t get me wrong I always did like Walwyn. How can all these moneys be squandered in all these ministries?
Being a smart lawyer, I am sure Mr. Walwyn must have some understanding of the definition between law and ‘policy’, and should know better. Pleading ignorance to what he knows is law, and following what he says were years of Government policy is disingenuous at best!
Unfortunately, a lot of people in the Civil Service do not have a clue and follow Walwyn’s lead. This country is based on the rule of law, however, a great majority of the civil service seem hell bend on perverting these laws and applying their own unfounded policies across the board as though these very policies were the law alone.
If the people of this country actually looked at the laws on the books versus what this, and previous Governments have done ‘policy wise’ they would be shocked!
Immigration, Labour, non-belonger land holding licenses, education, health, the lists are long of people in power making up the rules as they go to suit their agenda and implementing said policies as though they were the laws of the land.
Wake up people!
Don’t leave out departments like Survey and Land Registry where this practice has been rampant. This corruption is weaved deeply throughout the Civil Service. Look at how folks have lost their valuable property, due to crooked civil servants.
WHO ALL WAS BEHIND THOSE HYPOCRITES WHO CREATED THOSE FALSE STORIES TO MAKE YOU LOOK BAD , BUT IT HAS BACKFIRED , LOOK AT THEM AND SHAKE YOUR HEAD , ( A STILL TONGUE KEEPS A WISE HEAD
Prove your correct and go out there and finish the wall yourself with your money for materials and no pay for your labor. Then maybe, just maybe the residents of the BVI will forgive you.
…. but I doubt it!!!
Show us where the money come from for your restaurant at the Pier Park. Show us that the “wall” didn’t pay to build the restaurant. Show us who the architect for the restaurant is and who the architect for the wall is. There is more. The Brits will dig it all out.
for good governance and transparency, Mr Walwyn still plans to cooperate with the recommended investigation….correct? We don’t want ‘unfounded and manifestly unjust’ accusations to stand against such a well-intended process as the building of this wall.
There is not a single legitimate reason why a contract to build a simple wall would be divided amongst 70 contractors.
Not one.
Myron stop defending yourself over the wall. Those of who know the government procedures and practices understand what you are saying but there are those who do not care about the truth. Their only interest is to see their own people destroyed. They are playing right into the hands of the UK and the UK people living here. When they take over and the people wake up hopefully they will realize how stupid they were. It will come.
Myron thank you for those clarifications. There will be those people who will want to see you thrown down regardless of the truth. Hold up your head. You will make it through right in the presence of the critics.
Everybody know that with government if the contract was under 10,000 you did not have to have paperwork. Every all if us know that so because we so full of hate for each other pretending like it is the first time we hearing this. Then we wonder why bad things continue to happen to us.
Let’s stay on topic here my friends, Mr Walwyn accepted thar there may have been procedural flaws but these flaws in the system has existed for decades.
If it’s dishonest or corrupt to offer a petty contract which is under the cost of 10k to someone who is not the holder of a trade license then under that premise many if not ALL ministers, past and present are in violation.
If the issuance of a mobilization cheque to commence work is dishonest or corrupt then my friends many If not All ministers are in breach.
These practices be it right or wrong has been and still is til today the modus operandi of executing works for the Government. Don’t believe me? Call any BVI overnment agency today and inquire.
Well it was incumbent upon him as the decision maker to ensure it was done correctly. It’s disingenuous to blame a subordinate or even past administrations for your active decision making when the buck stops with you. How many times do we see officials bypass the system. Their hands are never tied to the system
I follow you on Facebook. Your post was very long but I read all of it and I understand what you were saying. I appreciate the explanation and the truthful and sincere feeling you expressed. The reality is Myron that some will get it and some will not. Oft times the people who don’t get it do not want to get it for a number of reasons that have nothing to do with the issue. This is unfortunately the world we live in now. Continue to be you because I know you to be a good and helpful person. Let the others who looking for contention and want to drag you down continue. I believe we have a good example before us of when you wish bad for others what happens to you.
The big question is how do you explain giving out 70 contracts to build a wall? Something about that dont smell good.
The question really is; if theft was the motive, wouldn’t it be easier to give the project to one contractor and collect the kick back on the back end? Think about it!
The lil man finally get a food and everybody up in arms!
So, Einstein, what I understand you to say is that it’s OK for the govt to help the “little man” even if it means the govt is breaking the rules the “little man” is expected to follow. Or, OK for those in govt to break the rules, so long as the “little man” gets a share? I remain unconvinced that this would even remotely be considered either honest or ethical. There are many other ways to help the “little man”, one of those, ironically, being to invest in an education. Perhaps part of the issue is that no one even knows or cares what good governance is or should look like so long as the “little man” gets their cash envelope at voting time.
Typical. A few of his cronies and electors may have benefitted.
The school children and the rest of the BVI were robbed.
It is amazing how some of us are always quick to forget the past corruption; this started from both past and present government officials, we rush to hold Walwyn accountable for a little wall, well let us take a journey back in time when both parties had a large amount of money for one hospital which, to date is not completed, who is to be held accountable for such great mismanagement of the money.
Start the judgment where it should start, do you remember the shortest bridge in the world which is located at Beef Island yet, is the most costly.
Indeed….had people been brought to account with the $ 100 million+ hospital debacle that took going on 10 years, perhaps later projects (school wall, Pier park, airport etc.) would not have occurred.
Just remember paying licensing fees for greenhouses never used exceeding 1 Million a year.
Nearly everything uncovered by the COI was legal. When the COI couldn’t find real evidence of criminality they recommended criminal investigations to look for something illegal. The COI was a fishing trip that recommended further fishing trips to catch some fish.
We hate how things are done in the BVI and have heard rumors for years so more of us tend to side with the findings of the COI but it makes no sense if we are going to spend more time and resources doing what the COI and audits have already done and have not gotten any closer to putting anybody in jail. I dont think a criminal investigation with our inept police force will find the missing information and documentation that CSC, Lake and so many others seem to conveniently lost, discarded or dont remember. Its been 3 years since the same recommended criminal investigations have been ongoing for BVIAirways and the High School Wall and no charges have been filed. We haven’t received an update from Police in months. Somehow I think these investigations have been closed secretly.
The Governor seems to think that his portfolio is doing well despite the public having no faith in the Police or our prison system which have officers from both being on the other side of the justice system with some frequency as of late. Every Governor has sat with cabinet while every thing they claim was not done in the interest of the people was executed and while the Governor cannot vote they could have summoned UK or the local authorities a lot earlier if they had the best interest of the BVI in mind instead of looking at the role of Governor as a high profile job opportunity and an extended vacation in the tropics.
I truly fed up of all this wall talk now. It’s going on 6 years now. I believe if it had something to find wrong the police would have found it by now. This is only common sense. Myron I don’t want to hear nothing more about this. You don’t have to prove your innocence. It’s those who calling you guilty that have to prove guilt. Stop studying these bad minded people. They going to think whatever they want regardless of what you say.
Oh, you and only you the COI wrong about? LMAO
You see this kind of confusion that we are in? This is what they want. Let us start to look at solutions rather than trying to find people to blame. Blame doesn’t fix anything. Get the root of the problem. The system of government is broken. If rules are being broken, no politician could do that by him or herself. It would take collusion between them and other civil servants who actually manage the systems. I do not believe this is the case. Let us see things for what they are rather than always trying to demonize our own people. I read the article above and I believe what Myron has said. I work in the government and experienced those very same things in my job. Contracts under 10k don’t require paper work. Up to this month we did this. If things doing wrong let us get them right but to try to blame people innocently is not the way. The problem will still be there after we finish doing that.
WHO IS AFRAID OF THE TRUTH , WHAT A PITY , U SHOWING OFF YOURSELF BY BLOCKING BLOGGS THAT ARE FACTS AND TRUTHFUL , I HOPE YOU GIVE YOURSELF A PAT ON BACK FOR YOUR GUTTER MENTALITY
PROCEDURAL FLAWS BY ITSELF IS CORRUPTION. PEOPLE IN OFFICE IS LOOKING TO GIVE THEIR FREINDS,FAMILY, CLUB MEMBERS, AND THEIR CHRONIES CONTRACTS AND AM NOT NECCESSARILY REFEERING TO CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS.
BUSSINESS SHOULD AWARDED CONTRACT BASE ON THEIR MERIT AND NOT WHO YOU KNOW.
the COI report is calling for an audit and an investigation into the wall and if wrong doing is found that prosecution be an option…..That’s the report and that’s the right approach. Not just for the wall but everything else that has questionable flaus and appear to be corrupt or lack value for money…The COI report is a very good one..
Jim Jones syndrome. HE thins he’s perfect and how dare anyone challenge him on his perfection and his disciples can’t see any wrong doings in him period. smh cult like following has zero accountability for him. He thought leaking his report would help him, he thought his media posturing would help him. Dude the UK been at this longer than you’ve known yourself, take correction and move fwd.
The way BVislanders tear down their own people will forever be the down fall of this place. You could see pure hatred in some of these comments and some of them don’t make one drop of sense. I want England take over the place so that we could feel some suffering. The same small man that we always talking about finally got some work to feed his family and we trying to kill someone’s who try to help them. Ayo ain’t see we is some crazy people?
Let Jamesie, Ashley, Crab, yellow or one of them had get the wall work the same people would be making noise saying the same people getting all the work and the lil man ain’t get nothing. Now the work share up and the same people making noise still. Is best Myron had give one contractor the work then and that would have been the end of the story.
You have any sense at all? A walk share up with 70 people what kind of money you think Myron could get from this? If the wall was given to two or three people I could understand the chances being better of him getting a chunk. Plus you sound like a jealous person. Look where you gone and the things you saying. We are really dirty people inside. Myron had businesses before politics so what you talking about.
BVI people are the most ungrateful people. Who was more helpful in government to people than this man. You could go this man for anything and he try to help you when the others dodging you and don’t answer your phone calls. This man raise the education system for the youths, help us raise our national pride and do all
Kind of things and look how we hear tearing him to the ground. Who decent would want to represent us? I surely wasn’t working for ayo no good, ungrateful and wicked self.
These people deserve leaders like Andrew, Willock and the rest of that type. Stay in your business and take care of yourself. I told you this already to your face. You are to nice and decent for politics in the BVI. We don’t like nice people. We like gangsters, crooks, liars and people who don’t do no work.
He did his part in there too so don’t make him a saint. Who know will know
70 Contractors, Almost a hundred thousand over budget. “YET THE WALL IS UNFINISHED”. Why should it be unfinished?
Walwyn chose to spend more than 40 years worth of teachers salaries to build a wall. At $ 25k/year, that’s 2 x 20-year teaching careers, or 8 teachers each contracted for 5 years. But a $ 1 million+ wall was more important. Who benefited most here?
As to the assertion “There was nothing that remotely resembled dishonesty or corruption that emerged from the testimony of the witnesses who worked on the project”, Mr. Walwyn is being agr best disingenuous. As a lawyer, he is surely aware of class-action law suits, which in effect are a form of economy of scale. Are we to believe that he could not apply that concept to the building of a wall? Res ipsa loquitur. The facts speak for themselves. He’d best be served by not saying anything. If you want to get out of a hole, stop digging.
All you was so busy being co**upt and dirty never realized that the COI would a caught to All you corruption wickedness in high places.
You cannot look at this in this manner. I find in the BVI we like to do things after the fact. Everyone knew that we the High school had security issues. I listened to the interview at the COI where Mr. Walwyn read out the numerous letters that were sent to him by the school principal about protecting the perimeter of the school. He read out about 6 of those letters. I also heard that the decision to build the wall was made by National Security Council and Cabinet after hearing the recommendation from the police commissioner and the high school principal. If something happened during that time like what just happened in Texas and those same letters were found that were written to the minister and he did nothing then the whole country would have been on him now. Can’t please you all at all. How is it I don’t hear any talk about the size and specifics of the wall. All people talk about is the money. But shouldn’t the money be relative to the specifications. Do we have the specifications? Do we know the size of the high school campus? Do we know what specifications had to taken into account with the wall based on the terrain etc? Do we know how it had ti be engineered because of its closeness to the Ghuts that flooded the school on many occasions? Do we know any of that? We in this country like to open our mouth without considering all the facts of things. We are to educated to still be doing things this way it is it that the slavery mentally of killing your own is drowning out our intelligence.
I reading all these comments about the former Minister. Is it me or are we missing something deliberately. The size of this project required cabinet approval. How is it we are only focusing on Myron. He cannot approve anything like this. This decision had to have been one of the cabinet of the government. The cabinet then directs the ministry in writing their decision for how the project must be done. This is what I know. It would serve some of us well if we found out how things works rather than coming on here and writing things we don’t know. But then again, we come on to blog the worse things about ourselves because that’s how we are. Moving right along. We can’t change.
Myron, I know you care about the people of this country. You showed it when you were a minister and it is maybe this same care of helping that cause you to spread the work rather than giving it to one or two people. People in this BVI don’t appreciate kindness. We ungrateful and we use each other until we can’t use them no more. Leave these people alone boss. Concentrate on yourself and your family and handle your private business. People are ungrateful. I can’t believe some of these comments I reading. We always said we wanted politicians like you. People who were intelligent and could represent us anywhere but also in touch with us to the lowest level. You are like that and we still treat you bad. Take my stupid advise. Leave these crazy people alone. Let people like the VIP and others lead them. That’s what they want.
You are a good man. I still believe in you. Hold your head up. You don’t mind these ungrateful people. Some of the same people here killing you I sure that them or some one of their family was able to get work on the same wall to buy food or pay something.
You wrong! You should do like Andrew and the VIP and deal with only 5 people. Rotate them in everything and give them all the work. But you went to go include all the small people and look what happen. That’s a lesson
According to a recent Facebook post made by the former legislator: “There was nothing that remotely resembled dishonesty or corruption that emerged from the testimony of the witnesses who worked on the project.” WALWYN YOU NEED TO STOP YOUR S**T NOW. REALLY. YOU THINK THE WITNESS WAS GOING TO THROW HIM OR HERSELF UNDER A BUS FOR YOUR CO**UPT UPPITY A**?
Furthermore, Walwyn shared that it was government ministries’ policy over the years, whether right or wrong, that when a contract was under $10,000, no trade license or good standing certificate, etcetera were required to execute projects.WHERE IS THIS POLICY WRITTEN Mr.Former Minister? And practiced by whom.