THERE’S A STRANGE scent surrounding the deal between the Sanitation Services Authority (SSA) and the private waste haulers.
Cou Cou got a whiff of the odour and it had us gasping. The peculiar smell hit us when we started to connect the dots that led to the agreement, which allows private haulers to service four rural parishes – St Lucy, St Peter, St John and St Philip – leaving the other seven parishes for the SSA to clean.
The first dot was the consistent deprivation of trucks, equipment and even protective clothing so the SSA could effectively do its work.
The second dot occurred after SSA workers held a week-long strike in July 2015 to support striking Barbados Investment and Development Corporation employees and the Customs & Excise Department, who were at odds with Government, resulting in massive garbage pile-ups across the island. One day after that action ended, the SSA workers were protesting again as their management docked their pay for the period for which they were on strike. The message in Government’s action was clear.
The third dot came in late May when Opposition Senator Wilfred Abrahams said there were 15 compactor trucks in the Bridgetown Port and they were part of planned outsourcing of the services provided by the SSA.
Dot number four came mid-June when Minister of the Environment Denis Lowe neither confirmed nor denied Abrahams’ allegation. Though he denied the SSA had a new fleet of vehicles in the Port, he acknowledged the authority had a shortage of vehicles for garbage collection. Dot five came when Prime Minister Freundel Stuart reportedly issued a directive for the SSA to start talking with the private haulers to seal the now historic deal, against a background of growing public dissatisfaction and union agitation.
Collectively these separate incidents seem to follow a pattern similar to the printing of money by the Central Bank, the present water-woes, and even Cahill. That is, secrecy, denials, then cash being paid out.
After all, why would anyone invest at least $3.75 million to purchase 15 compactor trucks unless they had pending private sector contracts, or foresaw that the SSA would need to rent them?
Cou Cou is concerned that the benefits of the agreement to Barbados would be undermined by the manner in which the four private haulers involved will earn $3.3 million in six months, while the future of the SSA’s workers is uncertain.
President may get the boot
AN EXTRAORDINARY MEETING is being planned to decide the future of a president of a very influential association.
From what Cou Cou understands, his election was immediately challenged by several members as to whether a fully constituted quorum was present for the vote. After another meeting was called, the election was deemed unconstitutional. However, the veteran professional has delayed holding the extraordinary meeting to decide his fate for more than four months, despite the executive council’s instructions to do so.
Those complaining about the new president are suggesting his strong-headed approach in general has turned off several members and they point to the loss of over $30 000 in members’ fees as a result. This occurred within two months of this man assuming office.
Questions are also being asked why two senior council members have resigned. The membership is worried that the healthy regard people have for their association could be compromised if a new election is not held soon. Word reaching Cou Cou is that the younger, more progressive members of the association are chasing after the dynamic leadership they had under the last president.
