January 31st 2019 Press Release
WASCO CLARIFIES MISLEADING INFORMATION ABOUT THE SIR JOHN COMPTON DAM REHABILITATION PROJECT
WASCO has been made aware of an MBC Television Saint Lucia Interview dated January 22, 2019 with Former Minister Dr. James Fletcher concerning the John Compton Dam De-silting Project. There has also been publicised a News Spin Interview with Dr. Ernest Hilaire who made aspersions questioning the tender process for the de-silting of the John Compton Dam / Roseau Dam and the condition of the Sediment Disposal Area (SDA).
These interviews portray a false perception that the De-silting of the Dam is not progressing as it should and that WASCO did not conduct the tendering process for the awarding of contracts for this Project.
WASCO would like to state in no uncertain terms that the De-silting of the John Compton Dam project was done through a competitive bidding process.
Phase 1 was opened up to only Local Contractors mainly because WASCO was of the view that since Phase 1 entailed civil works there were several local contractors that had the capacity to construct the SDA and indeed a Local Contractor was a successful competitive bidder. However, Phase 2 was opened to International Competitive Bidding in light of the highly technical skills required for the dredging component of the project.
The Tender Process for Phase 2 was also subject to oversight by the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB). Furthermore, at all times the National Utilities Regulatory Commission was aware of the process to be undertaken by WASCO for the use of the dredging fees for the Dredging of the Dam for Phase 1 and 2.
Therefore, the aspersions being made in the public are unfounded and most unfortunate. As a result WASCO would like to publicly proclaim that it has at all times acted within competitive bidding procurement rules and guidelines for the De-silting project and is committed to do all within its power to ensure the successful completion of same.
These interviews demonstrate that there are particular individuals whose objective is to deliberately disseminate false information. It is advised that in the future these persons should verify the true facts from WASCO before misleading the general public.
