Black Immigrant Daily News

PHILIPSBURG — The tender for solid waste collection for the period 2021-2026 was not only unfair and not transparent, as the Ombudsman states in its report about its systemic investigation into this matter, it was also rigged.

This appears from documents that were delivered anonymously to the faction of the Party for Progress; the PFP submitted these documents to parliament and they became part of a debate about the tender during a central committee meeting on Monday.

Click here to watch this Parliament meeting online>>>

Independent MP Christophe Emmanuel lit the fire by quoting from the documents. He referred to the terms of reference that state, among other things, that bidders have to submit certain documents. If one of those documents is missing, the bidding contractor would be disqualified.

MP Emmanuel elaborately showed that two contractors, Avyanna and Garden Boyz, were disqualified from the tender because their bids were incomplete. One other company also submitted an incomplete bid: Leonard Enterprises, a company that has been hauling garbage in St. Maarten for many years.

But of these three companies, only Leonard Enterprises did not get a contract. Avyanna en Garden Boyz mysteriously completed their bid-documents after they had been disqualified.

“How did Avyanna know that a bank statement was missing?” Emanuel wondered. “Because a staff member at the ministry told them. Leonard enterprises failed to submit a plan of action for the execution of the work. Were they also notified? If the answer is no, then this bid was rigged. This is fraud,”  Emmanuel said. “This is what you call bid rigging. It should be re-tendered.”

Emmanuel showed all sixteen tender documents the PFP faction had submitted.”When I look at all these documents I see that Quality Sweepers passed, but they did not get a contract. And the ones that failed have a contract today.”

Because the terms of reference have been approved by the Council of Ministers, Emmanuel said that the whole COM is complicit. “The issue for me is not the companies that got the contracts. The issue is how all this was manipulated.”

Earlier, Emmanuel already asked for a copy of the advice that was sent to the Governor. “He should be put on notice as well. What kind of due diligence did he do? But no matter how you flip the coin, there is no way the Governor would have signed off on this tender if he had received all these documents.”

MP Angélique Roumou asked where the documents had come from and MP Melissa Gumbs answered that they had been delivered anonymously in an envelope.

VROMI-Minister Doran is in parliament on Wednesday to answer questions from parliamentarians about the irregularities.

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Related articles:Ombudsman: Garbage collection-tender was not fair and not transparentPFP: Ombudsman’s report is the final straw in a long list of poor governanceOmbudsman Mossel: “You cannot use capacity as an excuse all the time”Ombudsman gives VROMI-ministry bad report card

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Black Immigrant Daily News

Through the creation of an incentivized teaching scholarship programme, the University of the West Indies, Mona (UWI) in partnership with the NCB Foundation aims to slow down the migration of our teachers from Jamaica.

The Building Out Our STEM Teachers (BOOST) Scholarship which started in 2021 facilitates the advancement of teachers in pursuit of specialisation in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics.

With the Foundation now on board with a whopping $9 million investment, special emphasis will be placed on producing high-quality teachers in digital studies.

Scholarship recipient Thea May was delighted for the assistance to complete the final year of her computer studies major in education and liberal studies. Her passion for inspiring a love for digital studies remains resolute as she prepares to enter the education workforce.

“Jamaica is in dire need of more proficient educators. We have so many young minds that are curious about the way things work and how to make them better. My role as a teacher is to inspire, motivate and make learning enjoyable,” said May.

With the resignation of 400 teachers since the start of the year, the BOOST programme will help to make teaching more attractive. Through the programme, student teachers will receive grants to cover their student loans and an increase in their salaries. Scholarship recipients will also benefit from specially-designed mentorship schemes, summer training, outreach programmes, and networking opportunities.

Successful NCB BOOST scholars will be placed in high schools to teach subjects such as Information Technology, Webpage Design, and Programming at the high school level.

“The shortage of qualified teachers in Jamaica has significantly impacted the development of the human resources within the island. Through the BOOST programme, the UWI will aid in creating a steady supply of quality STEM educators,” stated Professor Michael Taylor, Dean of the Faculty of Science and Technology at UWI’s Mona campus.

In her remarks at the signing of the partnership agreement on July 28, CEO of the N.C.B Foundation, Nadeen Matthews Blair is ready to expand the pipeline of digital talent in Jamaica. “The N.C.B. Foundation is on an urgent journey to enable the digital transformation of our country through expansion of the pipeline for digital talent, but these digital practitioners can’t teach themselves,” stated Blair.

She explained that it is critical for the country to find innovative ways to attract and retain its teachers. “BOOST is a win-win. The NCB Foundation is also delighted that it provides a pathway for our own digital scholars to give back after getting their tertiary education fully funded by the N.C.B Foundation,” said Blair.

For more information about the BOOST Scholarship programme visit the UWI Science and Technology homepage www.mona.uwi.edu/fst/.

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Black Immigrant Daily News

Dear Editor,

It is quite ironic that when we find ourselves stepping up in the socio-economic ladder, we tend to allow the human components of empathy & humilty to vanish from our modus of operandi.

As a manager & moreso as a Christian, I will confess that I have witnessed some unethical & unscrupulous practices among my colleagues, in the way  how they go about with an “undertone” of hiring and promoting  persons up the cooperate ladder, especially in the Statutory & Public sector.

Such practices has now forced me as a Christian to ask the question, does the ” knee in the neck ” syndrome exist on the job sites?

Just about 2 years ago,  we heard about George Floyd, an Afroamerican man, met his untimely death due to a knee that was placed in his neck by someone who was considered to be in authority. Obviously, discrimination & exercising power was a part of that screen play.

Interestingly, it is my view, that the same “knee in the neck” syndrome exists on the job sites of today.. Similar to Mr. Floyd, who was at the time pursuing his own ambition, an employee likewise, has as one of his or her own ambition to climb the cooperate ladder, some day.

Unfortunately & sad to say, some persons on the job never fulfill their ambitions because they become a victim of discrimination, and hence, are been overlooked or get pushed at the back of the bus or even have the corporate ladder pulled from under them inspite of the hard work & dedication they put into the  organization. As a result, within the walls of the workplace you can silently hear the voices ” I am dead but I am still breathing “.

Of course, I will certainly agree & also give kudos to those of us who,  as employees work feverishly & academically to get to the top of the cooperate ladder. On the other hand, for some unforeseen circumstances others may just cruise their way just to get themselves to the next level. Still kudos to them!

Regardless of the situation, each employee should be looked at in a fair manner & be treated with utmost respect. On the job, all employees should be faced with a level playing field.

As managers, many of us may have a different style of managing however, we should operate on a common ground of professionalism, fairness, empathy and invoke the Christian principle of ” do unto others just like you would like others do unto you”.

Of course, it is expected that the heads of every organization will set a standard and a criteria for hiring and promoting individuals. Be that as it is, the process of hiring or promoting should be impartial,  so that what goes for one…. should go for all, regardless if that person is a friend, a family member, is liked or otherwise.

Sadly, I have seen friends, family members & close associates of managers been highered or promoted all because of that ” knee in the neck syndrome ” of nepotism or cronyism, thus causing other staff members to be stifled on the job. Strange enough, some of these persons who have been hired or promoted may not even have the proper work ethics or the required qualification for the job.

We are now in the 21st century where we as managers are better trained than before. As a result, I am making a plea that we become more cognizant of the health & culture of our organizations. Sometimes, the way we operate & the way treat our subordinates tend to be the source of creating an environment of hostility & demotivation within the workplace.

Let us avoid been kings & queens of all survey and act more professional & impartial towards our staff. Remember today may be for us but who knows, tomorrow that coin may flip and that day may just be for them.

Fitzroy

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Black Immigrant Daily News

Barbadian consumers will be paying less for gasoline and diesel come Friday, as Prime Minister Mia Mottley announced that the price of fuel at the pump will be capped for the next five months. CLICK HERE TO JOIN OUR WHATSAPP GROUP FOR NEWS UPDATES.

Gasoline will cost BDS$4.48 (US$2.24) per litre, while diesel will be BDS$4.03 (US$2.01) until January 31, 2023.

During a wide-ranging press conference on Monday, Mottley said the cap on the Value Added Tax on gasoline and diesel, which was put in place five months ago, would be kept in place.

“We are going to extend that cap at least until the 31st of January, and we are doing that recognizing that Barbadians do need to be shielded some more…. And while things are difficult even for the Government, we feel that we have an obligation to shield Barbadians more,” she said.

“We will now place a cap on the price of gasoline and the price of diesel at the pump and we will hold to that higher price until the 31st of January. To be very precise, if the prices fall below that cap, all of those reductions will be passed through to the consumer. If the prices go above that cap, the Government will hold the line and keep the cap in place.”

Prime Minister Mottley added that, periodically, Government would have to “make whole” the Barbados National Oil Company, the importers of the products.

She stressed that this adjustment was necessary to give some level of predictability to consumers and those people whose livelihood depended on gasoline and diesel.

Mottley pointed out that there had been a decline in prices, so Government was not capping at the highest possible price.

“The BDS$4.83 (US$2.41) at the pump that you are paying now for gasoline is at a far higher price than what is currently available and to that extent we will absorb the loss on that, because those prices were to have remained in place until the end of January. Since then there was a shipment that came in a little lesser; we believe that we need to cap it at the lesser amount…,” Mottley said.

The Prime Minister disclosed that earlier in the day she held discussions with Deputy Prime Minister Santia Bradshaw; Senior Minister Kerri Symmonds, who has responsibility for the Ministry of Energy, and the public service vehicle associations.

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Black Immigrant Daily News

The 2022 Population and Housing Census, which is to get underway in September, will cost the Government more than $2 billion.

The disclosure was made by Finace and the Public Service Minister, Dr Nigel Clarke, at the official launch of the island’s 15th Population and Housing Census at the AC Mariott Hotel last Wednesday.

Clarke said that more than 7,000 people will be employed as census takers across the island between September and December.

“This is an exercise that costs approximately $2.4 billion. So not only is it a big deal, it is a big investment, as well,” Clarke stated.

He pointed out that the data collectors will be drawn from “areas close to the areas they will be collecting data from”, to ensure that they are familiar with the communities that they will be working in.

In keeping with international standards and best practices, censuses are conducted every 10 years. The last census in Jamaica was conducted in 2011 and should have taken place last year, but was delayed by the coronavirus pandemic.

According to Clarke, the data collected from the census will not only provide an estimate of Jamaica’s population size, but it will inform Government policies and programmes, including where to build schools, clinics and other government services.

Another element of this year’s census, said Clarke, is the use of technology to improve the efficiency and safety of the data collected and its subsequent processing.

“As Jamaica moves towards a digital society or a digitised society, and it is significant that this is the first census that will be conducted using tablets — no paper.

“… But, as we move towards being a digital society, understanding the distribution of ICT access and use and prevalence is abundantly important,” he declared.

Meanwhile, the minister noted that although census day is on September 12, “the data collection will take place over three months.”

He added: “So the census takers will be going around between September and December, but the questions they ask you will be with reference to September 12.

“So I ask you, nuh badda go out on the night of September 11, and yuh forget that weh yuh do on September 12, because that is the reference day for the census,” Clarke pleaded.

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