00:00Land and Legal Affairs Minister Saddam Hussein says government was left shocked by claims
00:05surrounding repair works at the University of the West Indies Day Bay campus.
00:10At all material times, the University of the West Indies was kept abreast of what the government
00:19was doing with respect to the repairs.
00:21Hussein insists that the university was fully informed, pointing to documented correspondence
00:28between the institution's principal and the ministry's permanent secretary, outlining
00:33that all repair works would be handled by the state.
00:37So you could imagine our shock and surprise yesterday, that articles would have appeared
00:44or been published in the newspaper today, which suggested that the UE will be undertaking
00:51some plumbing work, I believe for $4 million or so on.
00:55I can tell you those plumbing works are part of the scope of works that PSEL will have
01:00to conduct to bring the campus back to a state of readiness.
01:04He says those reports contradict the agreed arrangement and have raised serious concern within government.
01:11Despite the controversy, the minister reaffirmed the government's commitment to having the
01:15campus ready for the new academic year in September.
01:18The cabinet has not taken any decision as yet as to what programs or what faculty will be
01:28placed in the building.
01:29Those matters are still a work in progress because we need to get the building.
01:34Our first priority is to get the building up to scratch.
01:37An estimated $60 to $70 million has been allocated for the rehabilitation project with oversight by
01:44the Palo Seco Agricultural Enterprises Limited.
01:48Hussein says the tendering process is already underway as government moves to bring the facility
01:54back into operation.
01:56Urvashi Tawari Ruknarain, TV6 News.
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