‘NDP's malicious treatment of Biwater cause of water woes'– Hon Fraser
Speaking with this news site last evening April 23, 2015, Honourable Fraser said he believes that this is another attempt of misinformation on the part of Government and one that he cannot stand by and let slip.
He called it inconceivable that the Virgin Islands Party while in Government would sign an agreement in 2010 and have certain infrastructure built just in a matter of months following, even without the construction of the Biwater plant itself.
This is in response to criticisms from the NDP that the VIP should have gone ahead and put the necessary infrastructure in place for the distribution of water on Tortola even while the Biwater plant was not yet constructed.
But, according to Hon Fraser, the NDP's criticisms do not make sense and are just ploys at covering their own failure in putting in place the necessary infrastructure after some three years in office.
“Once again the NDP is trying to mislead the public on this issue…they had a full three years from the time they entered office in November 2011 to November 2014 to put the necessary infrastructure in place,” said Honourable Fraser when contacted.
Condition in contract no oversight - Hon Fraser
In a statement sent out to the media, Honourable Fraser said the assertion that the VIP signed a contract with Biwater for 2.3 million gallons of water a day for which government must pay, whether they use it or not, is only true in cases where government is at fault. “This condition on the part of the VIP government was no oversight, as it was the only sure way to hold government accountable to the people of Tortola to provide them with a reliable supply of potable water 24 hours a day, 7 days a week,” said Honourable Fraser in a statement.
“However, while the VIP was aware of government's track record in dealing with water producers, we did not anticipate the level of spite and evil the NDP would have brought to the equation,” Honourable Fraser said in his statement.
NDP gambled and lost
“We, along with the general public, were aware that the NDP campaigned in 2011 that they were going to get rid of Biwater, so we expected them to frustrate Biwater, which they did, and they also gambled and lost big time by ignoring the contract. The NDP took office on Nov 7, 2011, and Biwater supplied its 1st gallon of water on Nov 27 2014, a full 3 years after NDP took office,” he said.
Honourable Fraser pointed out that during this time, government failed to make provisions to get the water to the people of Tortola who remain to this day desperately in need. He said that the critical pumps and piping infrastructure upgrade along the Ridge Road to get water from Sabbath Hill Reservoirs to Brewers Bay, Cane Garden Bay and Hannah Hill Reservoirs was ignored by the NDP Administration during this long 3-year period, despite being reminded in the HOA during the Q&A Session less than 1 year into their Administration.
According to him, this same situation exists in accommodating the flow of water from the same Sabbath Hill Reservoirs to the Fort Hill Reservoirs. He said that the records in the Ministry will show that the VIP Government left behind proposals for the installation of these pipes, which was done professionally, and to a standard equivalent to that provided on the supply side by Biwater.
NDP's argument ludicrous
“Blaming the VIP for not installing and upgrading the piping before construction of the Biwater plant began in 2011, and a full 4 years before water was first produced, is like asking someone to buy furniture for a house before construction starts, and is downright ludicrous. This is especially when considering that at the time our government was saddled with a Peebles Hospital Project costing $100 million, that had a $64 million contract and only $35 million in financing, compliments of the previous NDP Government,” said Honourable Fraser.
He said that because of what he referred to as a “willful and careless act towards Biwater by this Smith Administration,” Government can only take on average 1.3 million gallons of water a day, and must pay for over one million gallons which they are not using, and worst yet, they must run other plants which would have otherwise been shut down if piping was in place to get the water from Sabbath Hill.
“Also their failure to upgrade the Electricity Power generating capacity so Biwater could access the Grid, causes the use of very expensive rentals for electricity. The estimated cost to tax payers as a result of this willful act is upwards of five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000.00) a month, and this started in December 2014,” he said.
An all too familiar trait
Honourable Fraser noted that the practice of blaming the previous government when failure smacks this NDP Administration in the face is an all too familiar trait of theirs.
“The people of Tortola can take comfort in knowing that the VIP is satisfied that they have brought a solution to the shortages of water on the island by signing an Agreement for the daily supply of 2.3 million gallons of water at $12.90 per 1000 gallons, at a time when Government was being billed as high as $24.00 per 1000 gallons. And that same Agreement included a sewage treatment plant, which provides for a permanent solution to ridding the Road Town metropolitan area from having raw sewage running in the streets and ultimately dumped into the ocean,” he said.
24 Responses to “‘NDP's malicious treatment of Biwater cause of water woes'– Hon Fraser”
Angry Consumer
When dem take de local out it wasn't a issue for dem
I’m pleased that Premier Fraser came out quickly and unequivocally to disassociate himself from this questionable approach and LIES in dem NDP staged commercials as if the people get fooled again like they were in 2011 it could easily influence the voters and it’s people to then go back to the big corruption days of the NDP and the UK will take over the BVI