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The Imer Hernandez Hemorrhage of Political Capital Continues
posted (February 21, 2019)
And that same kind of sliding figure - to mean "nayli all" is what could be said about road works contracts being awarded to Imer Hernandez. A spreadsheet circulated to the media today shows that between 2015 and 2018, Imer Hernandez Development Company has received over 200 payments from the Ministry of Works, totaling in the tens of millions of dollars. All this for a contractor whose works have been known to be less than stellar.

It's making news this week, because on Monday, Hernandez's Company got another prize contract of 20 million dollars to pave 10 miles of the Western Highway.

Today, the PM stressed - as government has been doing - that Hernandez was selected for this contract by the IDB:...

Rt. Hon. Dean Barrow, Prime Minister
"This is an IDB contract and there was an open bidding process as I understand it. He was the lowest bidder and even then the IDB said no it cannot be awarded, because none of the local contractors satisfied all of the requisite criteria in terms of the IDB. So they had to reel and come again and the IDB then agreed that if you did something here and you did something here, then everybody could again be seen as passing the qualifications test and you could then make your decision based on the normal metrics and in that kind of a context Mr. Imer Hernandez won fair and squares. The consultants, the supervising consultancy is to be done by some English firm that according to people in the Ministry of Works is the terror of any concern with whom they have to work and who they have to monitor. So the IDB has made sure that there was a transparent process, the man won fairly by way of that transparent process and in terms of the actual discharge of the work, he will be subject to the most rigorous monitoring supervision by this foreign firm. So I think nuff said."

Jules Vasquez, reporter
"If there is a misadventure with the road, eventually they blame you. That is my point. Nobody will curse the IDB."

Rt. Hon. Dean Barrow, Prime Minister
"Maybe they will curse the English firm. But again, with these things, any contractor - Lord man isn't there the period lasting I think in this case well over a year within which any, the slightest defect that makes an appearance, it is the obligation of the contractor to set it straight - to fix it."

Reporter
"How would you respond to it with the perception of nepotism with Imer Hernandez particularly being the nephew of...?"

Jules Vasquez, reporter
"Sir, its 207 contracts."

Rt. Hon. Dean Barrow, Prime Minister
"Boy, I would have to check that. Ten years? Anyway let's not argue about that. But as far as I am concern, Imer Hernandez is an established contractor entitled to bid for contracts like any other contractor in the country. Look, there is politics in this, he is who he is in terms of being the nephew of the former deputy prime minister. He himself is an outspoken UDP and so that causes him to draw a great deal of fire, but this man is entitled to work. As far as I am told, this ma does good work."

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