-despite errors, Granger defends keeping all his ministers

PRESIDENT David Granger is not of the opinion that the errors made by members of the cabinet of his administration warrant disciplinary action, because those errors, in his opinion, do no amount to criminality.“Yes, we accept that there have been errors, but those errors have not been (the) result of criminality; there have been administrative errors, and they are being corrected,” the President said on his weekly television programme, The Public Interest, which was broadcast Friday evening.

“Every government makes errors, and we just want to ensure we make fewer and fewer errors as we go along. But we have learnt a lot over the last 15 months,” the President stated, adding that in some cases Government had limited control over the situations.
“Some of them are human, some are administrative errors, and some are as a result of what was inherited,” the President declared.

President Granger does not believe there is a need for a Cabinet reshuffle. He said the changes made to his Cabinet at the beginning of the year were designed to improve Cabinet’s performance. Early this year, the President created the Ministry of Public Telecommunications, headed by former Minister of Tourism Cathy Hughes. He also merged the Ministry of Tourism with the Ministry of Business, and placed same under the control of Minister Dominic Gaskin.

“Whenever something happens that has been damning to the Government, we have an investigation. It is not something to ignore. Where necessary, we ask the ministers concerned to explain and give reasons for their conduct,” he added.
President Granger noted, too, that all matters of national importance — positive or negative — are deliberated upon at the level of Cabinet. He said inquiries and investigations are done as a means to improve his administration’s performance.

Referring to the controversy surrounding the rental of a pharmaceutical bond at Sussex Street in Georgetown, the President made it clear that while there were errors with respect to the acquisition of the property and the rates for rental, government had an urgent need to remove much needed pharmaceuticals from the wharf.

“…we had a situation with drugs on the wharf, and there was a danger of expulsion from the facility and there was need for the pharmaceuticals around the country; and those were the motivations for the action that was taken,” he explained, even as he

assured that “there was no criminality”, and noted that “it was a question to get the job done.”

“Errors were made, and the Minister apologized. We are correcting those…As far as I am concerned, we have put in place a system to prevent a recurrence,” President Granger told reporters.

Facing mounting calls for him to be relieved of his portfolio, Public Health Minister Dr. George Norton apologized on August 25 for what was deemed misleading and untrue statements to the National Assembly regarding the acquisition of the Sussex Street bond, owned by Lawrence ‘Larry’ Singh of Linden Holdings Inc.

“I gave answers based on knowledge…and information presented to me,” he said, referring to his statements in the House on August 8, when he claimed that the New GPC, which previously housed Government’s pharmaceutical supplies, wanted over $19 million a month for rental, and so his Ministry sought to rent a cheaper bond for $12.5 million. He had also claimed that the Sussex St. building was certified, but a check revealed that the building was incomplete, and in fact had no certification.

“As Minister of Public Health, I know a high standard of duty is expected of me…I take full responsibility, and you have my commitment that it will not recur,” declared Dr. Norton.

Norton did not believe that his misleading statement to the House warranted his resignation or dismissal. Government has since described the arrangement with Linden Holding Inc. as “undesirable”, and has explored a number of options to remedy the situation, including shortening the lease period for the rental of the Sussex Street facility while expediting a search for another facility.