-Minister Manickchand hopes outstanding work will be completed before school term ends
PROVIDING an update on the Bamia Primary School construction project in Region Ten, Minister of Local Government and Regional Development, Priya Manickchand, has said contractors have still not finished work on the facility.
Noting that there are still minor works left to be completed, Minister Manickchand said the ministry refuses to take the building for the sake of taking it if they are not completely satisfied with the work produced by contractors employed to build the facility.
“This is something contractors across the country are going to have to understand; if you bid for a project, you came and said that you could do this, with this cost, in this time, at this quality [then] you have to do it,” she stated.
According to Minister Manickchand, the level of tolerance by persons in government for people who breach their terms is heavily reduced. Admitting that there are conditions that they are willing to hear, the minister said these projects cannot take as long as this school has.
The Bamia Primary School project was awarded to St8ment Investment Inc. in 2021 and was valued at $364 million. The ministry facilitated the contract signing at the time. For some time, the project has faced several challenges which included material shortages, rising costs and labour shortages.
The company was granted an extension to complete the school by late 2024. Reports in the media had indicated that the project would have been completed in time for the start of the 2025 school year on September 8.
On September 15, shortly after being sworn in as the local government minister, Minister Manickchand put measures in place to ensure that the project could be completed in a timely manner.
The Bamia Primary School is set to accommodate some 800 pupils and will be Region Ten’s most modern school. It is being designed to include state-of-the-art facilities such as a gymnasium, a main building with 44 spacious classrooms, modern restroom facilities, a library, music room, science laboratory, and staff room.
Speaking briefly on this matter nearly three months later, the minister said she has had several meetings with contractors who have also assured her that they want to complete the project and be off the site.
“So, I suspect and my fingers are crossed that even before school closes we can get the children into school. But that would require them finishing the work that has to be finished. We’re not taking a building that is not finished,” Minister Manickchand declared.
