Premier refutes giving the contractor an extra $ 300,000 for the AC sports activities advanced

By Contributor Last updated Dec 25, 2021

In All News / By: BVI News on December 24, 2021 at 8:54 a.m. /

The multipurpose sports complex in Road Town

Prime Minister Andrew Fahie has disproved claims that his government gave an additional $ 300,000 to a contractor to install air conditioning at the multipurpose sports complex in Road Town.

Opposition leader Marlon Penn said during an earlier meeting of the House of Assembly that he had examined the cost and tendering process for this air conditioning system contract and found that the contractor was preferred to another who had made a bid that was $ 300,000 less fraud . He further alleged that the lower bidder was disqualified essentially because of a typographical error.

But while Prime Minister Fahie called the opposition leader’s testimony irresponsible, he said there was an open and transparent tendering process for the contract.

“I sat here and it still annoys me to hear the opposition leader accuse a businessman of making over $ 300,000 in an offer for the multi-sport complex and then talk about people harming people in the House of Assembly . ”Said Prime Minister Fahie.

“He doesn’t know what the tender is about, he doesn’t know the technical aspects. How could you do this to the businessman? ”Asked Premier Fahie.

Prime Minister Fahie said the opposition leader’s testimony was lacking in integrity and pointed to other incidents in the past where contracts were not given to the lowest bidder but nothing was said about it.

“How is it that this one contractor aroused the opposition leader’s interest in going in such a negative direction?” He asked another question.

According to the prime minister, this was the reason his government introduced a law on integrity in public life.

Prime Minister Fahie said elected officials are being interviewed around the world so it is not a unique issue for the BVI.

But he said it had become even more difficult to dispel doubts about the credibility of public officials, with reckless remarks such as those of opposition members.