HAVE WE REACHED the stage in this country where we can hardly get the delivery of any public good or service right?
And have we so degenerated that public officials now believe they can’t, or won’t, be held accountable for their failure to properly manage the resources that are entrusted to them – a responsibility for which many of them are paid handsomely?
We can’t help but ask these two questions when we look at the current level of performance of the South Coast Sewerage System, the negative impact it has been having on residents and businesses in Christ Church, and the apparent failure of officials to heed the warning that the national hurt could grow into a major economic headache.
After sustained complaints over a period of more than two weeks, we wrote in our Editorial of Friday, November 25: “Our grand Independence celebrations take place in a few days, so it is hardly likely there will be any meaningful solution before then, but can we afford to have effluent pouring from sewer covers along Highway 7 on the South Coast when the 2016-2017 winter tourist season starts in exactly 20 days?
“How can those who are responsible for managing the affairs of the country appear so ‘unbothered’ in the face of such a stink that can do untold damage to the one area of the economy that is showing considerable resilience in the face of all kinds of pressure? Are we waiting for some visitor to be splashed with effluent while walking the street, as has happened to some citizens, and then turn it into an international crisis via the Internet?”
Perhaps those who are responsible believe we are out of place to call them out on this dismal management of a critical public service. Maybe that explains why, yesterday, we found ourselves publishing a story indicating that a number of tourists on holiday here had taken to one of the world’s most heavily used tourism websites, TripAdvisor, which has more than 60 million members, to comment on the stink in Christ Church.
Right now, as far as we are concerned, it no longer matters if a single broken pump or an entire system of obsolete pumps is at fault. It does not matter if the recent heavy rains are the cause. We could not care less if the infrequent or ill-timed opening of the sluice gate at the Graeme Hall Swamp, or the alleged malicious lifting of manhole covers over the sewerage lines, created the problem.
This is a matter that has now been ongoing and creating problems for more than a month and as far as we can see, the effort to find a solution has at best been half-hearted. As we said before, how can we be so callous in our approach at a time when we are so economically challenged and the only real ray of hope currently is a rebounding tourism industry?
We do not need excuses. The matter calls for those with responsibility to fix the problem once and for all. If it is a matter of finance, then it ought to be a priority for Minister of Finance Chris Sinckler. What we find most unacceptable, however, is that after all this time the minister responsible, Dr David Estwick, has not found the time to say one word to the public about it. It is as though it is either none of his business, none of our business, or both.
It is very hard to believe that this is taking place in a country that less than a decade ago was described as “punching above its weight” and “knocking on the door of developed nation status”. Like it or not, this is conduct and performance more synonymous with banana republic status.
So we have had the first salvo from our guests ten days before the start of the winter tourist season. Let’s see what happens now!