Dear Editor,
The Minister of Works Robeson Benn has claimed that the design/build tender by the Chinese contractor for the new Timehri Airport was above board, and that the final price was arrived at after serious negotiations between the contractor and himself ably supported by the ministry’s engineers.
I am not aware of any engineer in Guyana who has experience in airport design, construction and preparation of contracts for airports.
I am writing, therefore, to ask the Minister to publish the terms of the agreement as well as the feasibility report, as it is the Guyanese people who will be paying back this loan. In my opinion the design appears to be overly extravagant and costly.
The drawings shown on the Internet indicate 7 gates for the new terminal and only about 2 gates would be in use at any one time. Small planes cannot use these gates and would have to park on the tarmac.
The cost to maintain such a large structure would also be very costly.
Trinidad’s new airport also has 8 gates, and most of the time only 2 are in use. I am not against development in Guyana, and the extension of the existing runway is of extreme necessity.
The final price tag for this airport is also unknown and is reported in the press as being between US$12M and US$150M. The Chinese have a reputation for bringing their own people to carry out all construction work, and there will be no avenues for Guyanese workers to get employment on this project.
I also feel there may be a clause which will make it difficult and very costly to abrogate this agreement. Since the Chinese contractor has already mobilized and is carrying out soil investigations, cancellation of the contract could run into 30% or more of the contract price.
It is also irregular and immoral for a contractor to carry out its own feasibility report for a project and prepare a bid for the project at the same time.
Yours faithfully,
M Alli
