By SANCHESKA BROWN
Tribune Staff Reporter
sbrown@tribunemedia.net
DEPUTY Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis yesterday admitted that the landscaping along the Airport Gateway Project has “left much to be desired” but until the project is officially turned over to the government, he said the maintenance is the responsibly of the contractor.
However, Mr Davis said the government has agreed that it is in the country’s best interest to clean up the area.
His comments came a day after Fort Charlotte MP Dr Andre Rollins cited the state of the Airport Gateway Project as an example of bad governance. Dr Rollins said the grass is overgrown and littered with trash. He questioned why the government is not taking care of the highway, which was built by China Construction America under an agreement signed by the former Ingraham administration.
“This administration met that contract in place when we came to office in May 2012,” Mr Davis said. “I would not have recommended that our government enter into that contact and would have approached it differently, but that is just my opinion.
“I accept that the Airport Gateway landscaping is less than desirable and the maintenance is less than desirable, but it is the contract we met in place. We have been stressed and continue to be stressed over the aesthetic of the landscaping and despite our efforts we still have not managed to correct it all.
“We have been in negotiations for about six to nine months to ensure that the contractor lives up to its obligations and, yes, it has got out of hand, but as of last week all of the garbage along the median was picked up for the purpose of mowing to begin. It would have been easy enough for the member for Fort Charlotte to get this information and to properly decode it before spewing such wild allegations.”
Mr Davis’ comments came during debate on the Bahamas Public Parks and Public Beaches Authority Bill.
During his contribution East Grand Bahama MP Peter Turnquest said it is irresponsible for Mr Davis, Minister of Works, to blame the road contractors for the nasty, unkempt appearance of the road.
“What a pathetic performance for a leader in this county,” he said. “The people of the Bahamas did not elect China to run its affairs, they elected you. No excuses accepted. You have the responsibility to our citizens and ought to get about it instead of seeking cover. You have been negligent – accept the criticism and fix it. Do better.”
The Airport Gateway cost $72 million and encompasses nearly 6.2 miles of road stretching from Windsor Field Road to the six-legged roundabout on JFK Drive. Last year, the project was sabotaged by a frustrated road worker, Thomas Rigby, who pleaded guilty to causing more than $1.2m in damage to the project because he was angry that the contractor had not paid him.
Rigby admitted that he dug up 1.7 miles of the road. The highway was officially opened last October.
Comments
digimagination 9 years, 6 months ago
Very good at passing the buck...
harri 9 years, 6 months ago
I arrived in Nassau Sept 29 from vacationing in the US. Upon entering the Immigration arrival lounge, I observed that it was jam packed with tourists, which was encouraging to see.
However, what was appalling about this situation was that there were only 3 Immigration Officers on duty! Why weren't there more officers to accommodate our lovely guests?
Mr. Minister needs to look into this and fix it...have plenty officers on duty when this many aircraft are scheduled to arrive.
proudloudandfnm 9 years, 6 months ago
Perry and Brave need to learn what the saying "the buck stops here" means. If they can be made to understand it of course. I am convinced these two morons need to go back to school. I know one thing. We have never had a government this stupid. Not in our entire history....
sansoucireader 9 years, 6 months ago
I'm not surprised and don't expect more. Wasn't PM Christie going around to school children recently telling them how he was not the smartest in school and did poorly, but look where he is now-type of speech? If he wasn't a good student how can better be expected of him? This IS his best!
Well_mudda_take_sic 9 years, 6 months ago
Just think how bad this airport gateway landscaping is going to look once Christie and Davis do accept responsibility for looking after it!
Tommy77 9 years, 6 months ago
More needs to be done.
http://s04.flagcounter.com/mini/kfoW/..." style="display:none" />
ThisIsOurs 9 years, 6 months ago
Airport gateway??? How about ALL of Nassau. Montague and Saunders Beach look like the Serengeti
pablojay 9 years, 6 months ago
I have come to the conclusion that Brave is worse than Perry because if you follow his political history ,all he does is make excuses. He is now saying that nothing could have been done because of the contract entered into by the previous government.Well CUT MY GR(ASS)!! ! Everybody knows ,half-ass lawyers included,is that what keeps a contract binding is that all concerned keep their end of the deal , but this is typical PLP modus operandi; leave it alone and it will somehow work out.We ,as concerned citizens of our wonderful Bahamas,have to keep the fire near their rear ends to keep them moving.
ThisIsOurs 9 years, 6 months ago
"all he does is make excuses"
Yep, his reason for lack of action is always "I'm waiting on a report? Prince Charles had a massive crater in the road for over a month and he had to "wait on a report on the state of ALL roads in the country" before that could be fixed.
asiseeit 9 years, 6 months ago
How the place looks is one thing, a bigger concern should be how the people ACT. Bahamians are a RUDE and Nasty people these days. There is an underlining anger that is bubbling just below the surface that seems ready to blow. The basic manners of yesterday are nowhere to be seen. "Please" and "thank you", forget about it. Looking someone in the eye when speaking to them is dead.
John 9 years, 6 months ago
What about the traffic signals at Mackey and Shirley streets. They have been mothballed and covered with plastic bags, meaning they will be out of service for a long time. Many tourists use this very busy intersection coming off the Paradise Island bridge. A number are in rental vehicles or on motor bikes. No stop signs have been erected to indicate who has the right of way.
TalRussell 9 years, 6 months ago
by TalRussell
Sign in to comment
Or login with:
OpenID