THE National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) of the Ministry of Agriculture has rejected assertions contained in a Stabroek News article last Tuesday, under the headline ‘Hope Canal sluice gates contract yanked from Courtney Benn.’The NDIA, in a statement, said the Hope Canal sluice gate contract was never “yanked” from Mr. Benn’s contracting firm.
It added that the construction of the sluice gates is not an item comprised on the Bill of Quantities of the contract with Courtney Benn.
“The contract awarded to Courtney Benn and signed between the Ministry of Agriculture and him does not include the construction of steel gates; rather, it is for the installation of steel gates. The installation of the gates is still part of Mr. Benn’s Contract,” the statement pointed out.
The NDIA noted, too, that from the outset it was responsible for procurement of the requisite stainless steel materials for the fabrication of the gates.
“Thereafter, there would have been a handover to the contractor for installation. We deliberately did not include it in the contract so that we can fast track the work. As the project developed, the NDIA went to a public bidding procedure to engage a contractor for the fabrication of the gates. This process has been completed and a contract was awarded to Guyana National Industrial Corporation (GNIC),” it said.

BEFORE PUBLISHING
GNIC called on Stabroek News to “seek the comments of NDIA before publishing issues” relative to the agency.
“Indeed, the acid test for the truth of the matter should have been a call to Courtney Benn,” it said.
Additionally, the Agriculture Minister, Dr. Leslie Ramsammy, has also spoken publicly on several occasions, about sub-contracting the fabrication of the gates.
In a previous comment, he noted that, with work on one of the four components of the massive project completed, efforts are progressing at an encouraging pace in relation to the remaining three.
Indications were that the US$15M Hope Canal project, which is expected to be the answer to the flooding experienced in the Mahaica/Mahaicony/Abary (MMA) areas during rainy periods, would be operational as the rainy season sets in.
Residents in the MMA area have, over the years, lost crops and cattle in floods, during the rainy period. As seen in the past, when the Maduni Sluice had to be opened to drain the East Demerara Water Conservancy, residents in the MMA area battled a rise in the Mahaica Creek, making the completion of the Hope Canal something that is much needed.
Construction on the project began in February 2011, with an estimated 18 months to be completed and the deadline was initially set for June 2013, but was subsequently extended to the end of August and then, once again, extended to December 31, 2013.
The Agriculture Minister expressed optimism about meeting the most recently revised date of June 2014 and within cost.