A total of 57 contracts were noted by a Cabinet sub-committee on December 30 last year as the government continued to pursue major projects notwithstanding its caretaker status.
Based on the documents seen by Stabroek News a large number of the contracts noted by the Cabinet subcommittee could be deemed as pressing while there were some that were not pressing.
On January 10 this year, Stabroek News had reported on 31 of the contracts plus another 23 by the subcommittee on December 23rd. The Ministry of the Presidency did not release a list of these contracts as is customary.
In the new documents made available to Stabroek News, 26 more contracts were taken notice of on December 30.
These include a contract for the installation of LED lighting at sections along the Linden Highway, a contract for 24” SDR 11 HDPE pipes for the Guyana Water Inc and a contract for the procurement of portable solar-powered runway lights for the hinterland and airstrips.
A contract for the completion of the 400 KWP solar PV farm at Mabaruma was also noted. This project had encountered a series of problems and is significantly behind schedule.
Among other contracts noted were those for the procurement of curriculum books for Grades 1 and 2 for the piloting of the revised curriculum and a contract for consultancy services for the planned new Government Analyst-Food and Drugs Department laboratories and office complex.
Included in the list also was the supply and installation of a whole-body scanner for the Guyana Prison Service and a contract for the rehabilitation of police stations at Parika and Baramita and a contract for operational services at municipal sanitary landfills.
Also on the list are contracts for consultancy services for the construction of a dormitory for the Linden Technical Institute and consultancy services for the reconstruction of St Rose’s Secondary. The St Rose’s project has been delayed reportedly as a result of poor designing of the project.
Other contracts include those for the rehabilitation of the Lethem Aerodrome in Region Nine and for the implementation of emergency sea defence works along the Mahaicony shoreline.
Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo had blasted the government over the surreptitious processing of the contracts, noting its caretaker standing and the fact that general elections were just week away.
He had cited in particular, a contract for the construction of the Yarrowkabra Secondary school to the value of $826.7m.
Asked about the recent criticisms levelled by Jagdeo, Director General of the Ministry of the Presidency Joseph Harmon told reporters that the monies that will be used to execute the contracts were included in the 2019 budget.
He emphasised that the process of awarding a contract starts months before it actually reaches the point of signing. Several processes have to be completed before the contract goes for signing by the permanent secretary, he said.
“There is a process which would have started, in many cases, six months, three months before and so Mr Jagdeo is fully aware of that, having been a Minister of Finance himself and therefore I think what he is trying to do is to create a situation which is seeking to say we are acting illegal,” Harmon said on the sidelines of the Guyana Defence Force’s Annual Officers’ Conference. He stressed that the funds for the contracts were allocated in the 2019 budget and as such, it is not new monies that the government is accessing. He also highlighted that the contracts were not hidden but were publicly tendered
