The Dangriga Market - for the Barrow Administration, it's like one of those wounds that just won't heal. SIF did its best to stitch it up - but yesterday the Dangriga Mayor tore it back open - and left it to fester in public view.
One of the Mayor's principal lines of attack is that when the contract for the market had to be re-negotiated with a new contractor, it cost four hundred thousand dollars more - money that was taken away from the town's overall disbursement from the Belize Municipal Development Project.
And so the mayor argues that the town lost when the first contract for 1.4 million dollars with Kennard Smart's company fell apart. And that loss means fewer paved streets. We asked the SIF project manager about it:..
Ernest Raymond, Project Supervisor - SIF
"It is not a situation where $400,000 was removed from one project to complete another project. We operate on the basis of an allocation for each town council and there is an overall budget for the project. In that regard, as we see it presently there is still the likelihood of the Dangriga municipality getting their two streets; Gasbi Ramos and Trucking Boulevard. When this project was first put to bid, it is interesting for you to note and to know that the highest bidder for this project was 3 million dollars at that time you know. We had bids at 3 million, 2.1 million and 1.4 million and in this case K & G Smart was awarded the contract for 1.4 million after meeting all the conditions."
Jules Vasquez
"You've said there is a possibility, you will still be able to do the Ramos Street?"
Ernest Raymond, Project Supervisor - SIF
"I would say let us see what the cost estimates are for the set of streets that we will do countrywide which includes Gasbi Ramos and Trucking Boulevard. Let us see those cost estimates."
Jules Vasquez
"Had things not gone so terribly array, wouldn't the paving of those streets have been a certainty as opposed to now a possibility?"
Ernest Raymond, Project Supervisor - SIF
"Again, if I may say that's how projects play out; projects by their very nature are subject to those vagaries of delays, cost overruns, budget....."
Jules Vasquez
"...corruption."
Ernest Raymond, Project Supervisor - SIF
"No, not corruption. In this case....."
Jules Vasquez
"4 people lost their job sir."
Ernest Raymond, Project Supervisor - SIF
"No, again I repeat Jules...."
Jules Vasquez
"You weren't involve you know, I don't say you were involved."
Ernest Raymond, Project Supervisor - SIF
"I can say I have oversight of the funds of the Belize Municipal Development Project and how it is being spent and I will tell you without any doubt that no money was stolen, there was no corruption involved in those funds. The auditors have confirmed as such."
Jules Vasquez
"But 4 men lost their jobs."
Ernest Raymond, Project Supervisor - SIF
"That has nothing to do with....."
Jules Vasquez
"It has everything to do with it, it's as a consequence of."
Ernest Raymond, Project Supervisor - SIF
"No, no, no, it's not a consequence of."
Jules Vasquez
"It's as a consequence of the conduct of the contractor...."
Ernest Raymond, Project Supervisor - SIF
"No, they did some inappropriate...."
Jules Vasquez
"With the contractor with whom they awarded the contract."
Ernest Raymond, Project Supervisor - SIF
"That's between them and the contractor, it's not between SIF and the works. No, SIF and the works stay on the one hand free of any finger pointing."
Notable is that back in 2012, the K and S bid from Kennard Smart was the lowest of any bid for the market - the two others were over two million dollars.
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