Despite Region 10 contractors being equipped with the necessary know-how to apply and gain government contracts, only 30 percent of all works are awarded to firms within the region. Lamenting and labelling the alleged state of affairs as discriminatory recently was the opposition-aligned Regional Chairman, Deron Adams.
“We have held programmes from the previous government guiding contractors on how to be a part of the tender process…However, despite that training, 70% of projects continue to go to people outside of the region,” Adams said during a press conference last week.
He noted that the situation is compounded by the fact that the composition of the Region Democratic Council (RDC)’s Tender Board is lopsided.
“There is no representative that was identified by the council to have oversight. The nominees that we submitted were discarded, and then the folks in Georgetown identified people who they know that they could control and people who are connected to their party,” the regional official noted.
He alleged that all five members of the sitting board are “affiliates or are connected in some way to the [ruling] People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C)”.
“And so there is no representation for Amerindians in the Berbice River to benefit from these projects to construct guard huts and bridges and prepare play fields…And maybe that is the reason why you would have seen a decline, a decrease in the region submission for projects,” the Chairman said.
Adams noted that his office will be advocating for more contracts to go to locals, noting that particularly the mining town of Linden, can play much bigger roles in developing the local economy.
