Crucial reforms underway within transport, harbours department – Min Edghill

What this source establishes

A DPI release, sixteen months before the disaster, in which Minister Edghill says the Transport and Harbours Department suffered 'longstanding issues of negligence, mismanagement, and accountability'. Edghill cited the MV Hercules engine damage caused by neglected routine checks and the dismissal of the responsible engineer. The document records a ministerial statement that T&HD maintenance discipline and staff accountability were failing across the fleet before the MV Barima was lost.

Official statement recorded in this source

Pre-disaster ministerial admission: "The Transport and Harbours Department (T&HD) is undergoing extensive changes to address longstanding issues of negligence, mismanagement, and accountability."

Key claims

• Minister Edghill said T&HD is undergoing extensive changes to address longstanding issues of negligence, mismanagement, and accountability.
• Edghill stated that "destruction of government property as a result of negligence...would no longer be tolerated."
• All personnel — engineers, captains, security staff, and managers — will face accountability for shipping losses and infrastructure damage.
• Edghill cited the MV Hercules, which suffered engine damage due to neglected routine checks; an engineer responsible for oversight was dismissed pending further action.
• Following an accident in Bartica where a truck slipped while disembarking the MV Malali, remedial measures are being implemented.
• The minister proposed rotating staff in long-held positions to combat complacency.

Quotations

• “destruction of government property as a result of negligence...would no longer be tolerated”— Bishop Juan Edghill, Minister of Public Works

This page is a research summary prepared for comment and review. It is not the article. Copyright in the original remains with Department of Public Information; the full text is held only in the private research corpus from which this archive was compiled. Follow the link above to read it at the source.