He made the comment as he rejected statements made by President of the George-town Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI), Chandradat Chintamani at the Chamber’s annual dinner and awards presentation on Wednesday. Chintamani had also decried the introduction of bus stops on Regent Street, which he said were creating serious problems in an already chaotic space. He had suggested that Regent Street become a one-way street and that an alternative route be found to offload the traffic that would be affected.
The GCCI President said the Ministry of Public Works’ ongoing campaign to “knock down this and knock down that” is uncalled for. He had asserted that roaming animals, speeding on the roads, drainage and garbage issues and poor road projects should be priorities among the strategies being undertaken in the country.
Benn slammed the comments and said that the assertions were “profoundly ignorant of the ongoing situation” or otherwise mischievous on the issues of bus stops and clearing the reserves. He declared that the introduction of bus stops along certain routes in the city improved the situation, while admitting that it is not optimized as yet. “I am surprised that the head of a chamber of commerce and industry would adopt a position which would seem to maybe sanction or license the theft of public property to allow for uncompetitive business practices, to maybe suggest and go along with a situation… in addition to the ongoing question of public safety and security,” Benn said.
He declared that the encroachment of public road reserves and publicly owned spaces is a serious matter and “I think it would affect the nature and the kind and quality of business services that are provided throughout the country.” It was the law that was being enforced, he stated. The minister said that the issues of traffic safety, traffic congestion and the improvement of infrastructure redound to the efficiency of business and the local economy. “So it’s inexplicable that these assertions could be made by persons in such a position,” he said adding that the assertions were made without any discussions with the ministry or any independent evaluation.
On the other issues, Benn said that the city council has seized about 30 roaming animals over the past six weeks and the campaign is ongoing. The police are working on the issue of speeding, while as it relates to drainage, garbage and poor road projects, the minister said that he believes that there has been a tremendous improvement in the quality and condition of the roads in the city and throughout the country. “We have our priorities and I think our priorities are properly and well ordered and we need to take issue with these types of interventions and assertions with respect to our work,” he declared. He disclosed that the ministry has completed about 95% of its programme for road and other works which should have been done in the city and on the coast for 2009 in addition to other works done.
The minister said he looks forward to partnerships with all interested groups and stakeholders to improve the situation. He noted that the situation cannot be improved overnight and declared that the issues are only now getting the attention they deserve. He also pointed to the laws and asserted that any person who has issues with respect to the things that the ministry has done has the right to take their issue to the courts.
Further, Benn noted that he has inherited the problems and is dealing with them as mandated by the government. He said such assertions coming from a senior person in the private sector are disheartening. The minister added that the issues identified have the ability to affect projects where funding is accessed from international financial institutions.
