MINISTER of Agriculture, Dr. Leslie Ramsammy yesterday cleared the air on misconceptions that are being peddled in sections of the media and by some commentators with regards to the Hope Canal Project.

During an interview at his office yesterday, the Minister rubbished claims that the Agriculture Ministry has arbitrarily removed the construction of the sluice gates from the contract that was awarded to Courtney Benn Contracting Services.
According to the Minister, while the fabrication of the eight steel gates for the outer sluice of the Northern Relief Channel at Hope is part of the design, it was never part of the contract with Courtney Benn.
“We wanted the Courtney Benn construction company to focus on the building of the infrastructure that will house the gates. I want to make it clear that it was a separate contract from the very beginning,” Minister Ramsammy clarified.
That contract was tendered out to the Guyana National Industrial Corporation (GNIC), which itself had announced earlier the completion of the fabrication of all eight gates. Those gates will be installed unto the structure of the outer sluice once the construction of that sluice is completed.
In terms of the Northern Relief Channel, the only outstanding aspect that is keeping it from operationalisation is the construction of the same outer sluice. As it stands, construction is in excess of 80 percent completed.
Minister Ramsammy said that if the contractor works normal hours every day, the remaining work should take about six weeks to be completed. In July, completion was anticipated by September month-end; however, a number of difficulties were encountered and the ministry is now playing a more active role in the execution of the work.
“Some of the difficulties that the contractor has encountered can be resolved by the ministry, and so all we are doing is working in partnership with the contractor so that those difficulties are removed. I expect that on Tuesday coming, work on site will be more diligent,” he said.
He noted that while the ministry is frustrated by the sloth of the contractor, the difficulties are understood and appreciated. He also remarked that the question of liability and liquidated damages is not off the table.
“The Ministry of Agriculture and the accommodation of the contractor does not mean that the contractor will escape liquidated damage…,” Minister Ramsammy said.
The ministry is working with the contractor with the view of increasing the working hours and number of days, so that construction will be completed between six to eight weeks. Earlier, Head of the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA), Lionel Wordsworth had indicated that the canal should become operational by year-end.
Minister Ramsammy explained that once completed, the canal will have to be tested; however, at this point in time even if it was completed, such testing cannot be done.
“One needs water to test it and we are not about to release any water from the East Demerara Water Conservancy because we are in a conservation period. Every ounce of water at this time is critical because in spite of the people joking about El Nino, we have had less rain this year so far, than we normally do,” the Minister said.
The ministry is anticipating the usual year-end rainfall which will then allow for the structure to be tested. The canal itself is over 90 percent completed.
“One media house took the time to take an aerial shot to show that there were pieces along the canal that are not completed. We have deliberately kept those because those are just couple of hours of work…we have deliberately kept those because of convenience to the residents. The residents have grown accustomed all these years of walking from one village to the next. We have kept those to allow for easy movement in transportation,” Dr. Ramsammy said.
‘WALK BRIDGES’
Once the sluice is ready, those outstanding aspects will be addressed. At that time, the only physical communication between villages would be to go all the way around until the ministry constructs ‘walk bridges’.
These interconnecting bridges across the canal are not part of the Hope Canal project. It will have to be budgeted for in the 2015 national budget. The only walkway that will be constructed from this year’s budget will be one between Hope and Dochfour, particularly to facilitate school children.
The ministry will also be constructing a tarmac next to the Hope Secondary school where buses can stop to take in school children, rather than them having to cross the main highway.
“We are making preparation for the operationalisation by the end of the year for this canal. It is important to note, however, that work on this canal will be ongoing for several years. The dam itself will be continuously worked on as the earth compresses, we will be adding layers to it,” Minister Ramsammy stated.
While the work may have been moving at a slothful pace, the Minister asserted that the quality of the work done cannot be questioned. The delay notwithstanding, the project is within the budgetary sum, which is $3.6B.