US$15 million for
making a 80 km road in the
jungle. Another
hoax - oil
Death and
marriage certificates
There are now more questions
than answers surrounding the US$15 million
contract that has been awarded to Makeshwar
‘Fip’ Motilall. The contract is to build
approach roads to the Amaila Falls Hydroelectric
site.
Motilall himself is not helping because when
this newspaper finally caught up with him
yesterday at his Guyana office at 117 John Smith
Street, Campbellville, he declined to respond to
any query on the contract.
Head of the Presidential Secretariat Dr Roger
Luncheon when asked about the award of the
contract to Synergy Holdings Inc. during a
recent press briefing said that this decision
was made via a public tender, done within the
provisions of the Procurement Act.
He said based on the submission of the standard
bid documents, Synergy Holdings Inc. was
successful in acquiring the contract.
Synergy Holdings Inc. came to Guyana with the
proposal in 2002.
It promised to raise funds for the hydro project
within two years. However, to date, eight years
later, the entity has been unable to raise
funding, hence the “advance” by the Guyana
Government, as reported by President Bharrat
Jagdeo.
Prime Minister Samuel Hinds, one of the first
people Motilall met when he came to Guyana with
the proposal for the hydroelectric project,
said, yesterday, that Motilall won the bid from
some others.
Kaieteur News has since learnt that among those
tendering for the contract to construct the
roads leading to the Amaila Falls hydropower
site were BK International and a joint venture
consortium.
When asked to comment on the award of the
contract to a man who owes taxes in the United
States, Prime Minister Hinds said those who
conducted the due diligence must have been
satisfied.
He said that he is not directly involved in the
project but he is aware that bonds had to be
posted and the contracts processed. He added
that he could not say whether the information
about ‘Fip’ Motilall’s indebtedness was
correct. This information is publicly available
on the official website for the Palm Beach
County Tax Collector in the State of Florida USA
(www.pbc.gov.com).
One individual close to the tender board said
that everyone was required to lodge a bond and
that the project had the blessing of the
Inter-American Development Bank and the World
Bank. However, in some quarters, the view is
that with the award of this contract, both
international agencies may withdraw from funding
the project.
This may mean that the Guyana Government may
have to fund the project from public funds,
something that President Bharrat Jagdeo said
that he is prepared to do if necessary.
He is already assured of at least US$30 million
per year from Norway.
According to the project proposal, the notice to
proceed was executed on April 12, last. Prime
Minister Hinds said that there are two notices
to proceed.
The first involves the preparatory work of
assembling machinery and equipment for shipment
to Guyana. The second notice to proceed would
become effective in another two to three months.
This would mean that the December 1, 2010
deadline for the roads’ construction may be
shifted backward. Conditions may develop that
would force this, the Prime Minister said. He
was adamant that the dam construction and other
aspects of the hydro project would begin before
the end of the year.
According to Motilall, there is currently a
media blackout on the issue from a Synergy
Holdings point of view and he will not be
speaking at present on any of the matters being
raised.
Alliance For Change leader, Raphael Trotman,
during a press briefing said that while the
party was in possession of some facts he would
not seek to castigate.
Rather, in the face of many seeming
irregularities, he questioned whether there was
due diligence done on Motilall before awarding
the contract.
According to the proposal request by the
National Industrial and Commercial Investments
Limited (NICIL) Motilall can sub-contract.
He must however provide “details on equipment
and machinery owned that will be needed and used
for task as proof of the Contractor’s
availability of equipment and machinery….
“Where Contractor is planning to subcontract
the use of equipment and machinery, a copy of
the agreement between the Contractor and the sub
contracted party must be included as well as a
detailed listing of the fleet, machinery and
equipment owned by the subcontractor.”
Motilall was also required to identify
“similar large scale project experience over
the previous five years citing examples of scope
of work, project location and costs.”
The contractor was also required to provide
details of his financial and human resource
capability to undertake the Proposal.
When asked for a copy of the proposal that he
submitted to NICIL to peruse, Motilall declined,
saying that this information would have to be
provided by the National Tender Board.
This newspaper has requested the proposal from
the Prime Minister Samuel Hinds but is yet to
receive it.
Thursday, April 15, 2010