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Cabinet Note 12 (2012) Mangrove Pond Green Energy Programme NOT Cahill Waste-to-Energy

The attached note was extracted from a Cabinet meeting minutes held on March 29, 2012 forwarded to the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry […]of Environment and Drainage for action. The title of the Cabinet note is instructive – Proposal for the Establishment of the Mangrove Pond Green Energy Programme – Sanitation Service Authority. BU notes…

, , ,
Edison Alleyne - Permanent Secretary , Environment and Drainage
Edison Alleyne – Permanent Secretary , Environment and Drainage

The attached note was extracted from a Cabinet meeting minutes held on March 29, 2012 forwarded to the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry […]of Environment and Drainage for action.

The title of the Cabinet note is instructive – Proposal for the Establishment of the Mangrove Pond Green Energy Programme – Sanitation Service Authority. BU notes the Cabinet instruction was sent to the Permanent Secretary for ACTION. Barbadians must turn the spotlight on civil servants who continue to keep a tight lip regarding the clandestine dealings of politicians in government.

Three years later we have the Cahill Plasma Gasification Waster to Energy Plant. What changed!

Cabinet Note 2012 - Proposal for the Establishment of the Mangrove Pond Green Energy Programme – Sanitation Service Authority
Cabinet Note 2012 – Proposal for the Establishment of the Mangrove Pond Green Energy Programme – Sanitation Service Authority

44 responses to “Cabinet Note 12 (2012) Mangrove Pond Green Energy Programme NOT Cahill Waste-to-Energy”

  1. Caswell Franklyn Avatar
    Caswell Franklyn

    David

    Don’t blame public officers for anything that is going wrong, unless you expect them to resign after they stand up to ministers of government. There are 25 posts of permanent secretary and deputy permanent secretary that are being occupied by persons who are acting. If one of the acting permanent secretaries stand up to a minister, as is required by the Public Service Act and the Financial Rules, that actor would be reverted so fast his head would spin.

    If that person is reverted to his substantive post and does not resign, over time he would see his pension entitlement reduced by over $2,000 per month. For that reason, the permanent secretaries keep quiet while ministers ride roughshod over them.

    The permanent secretary that is featured in this post has been acting before the DLP took office in 2008. The unwritten rule appears to be keep them acting and keep them compliant. The Public Service Act does not allow the Public Service Commission to keep persons acting in vacant post in excess of one year. But Government ignores the law so that the politicians can get their own way. By the way, the Head of the Public Service has been acting for two years.

    Another method of getting their own way is to establish a whole set of statutory boards. That would explain the BRA.

  2. David Avatar
    David

    @Caswell

    The PSs should be moved to come together in the interest of the country. United they stand the greater the service rendered.

  3. Caswell Franklyn Avatar
    Caswell Franklyn

    Come together? What are you talking about? This is Barbados remember? Recently, customs officers came together in their own best interest and the interest of the country and they are still being vilified by idiots.

    >

  4. watchman Avatar
    watchman

    This Edison Alleyne, the P S in the Ministry of Environment and Drainage and the others of his kind have lost any integrity their may have had on entering the civil service, these top civil servants only care about then and some of their family , (not the poor side of the family)how can men like Mr. Alleyne who have families in a household overlooked the danger to some other person household? I was told point blank you can’t see or speak to this Mr. Alleyne and he don’t/can’t have to respond to john public, the Ministry is in an embarrassing situation

  5. de Ingrunt Word Avatar
    de Ingrunt Word

    David, interesting how the leaders of the country could so blatantly flaunt the law re so many PSs being in acting roles and yet be so vocal about unions and others not following protocols.

    But we sing this tune regularly so it’s now well known.

  6. watchman Avatar
    watchman

    Who benefit when top civil servants only sees $$$$ and don’t standup? and are you a stand up person?

  7. watchman Avatar
    watchman

    @ Caswell Franklyn
    Who benefit when top civil servants only sees $$$$ and don’t standup ? and are you a standup person ?

  8. Caswell Franklyn Avatar
    Caswell Franklyn

    Watchman

    The $$$$$ seem to be the motivating factor that runs through this society. We have a set of politicians that is completely incompetent and they know it but would they move aside and allow others to pilot this economy out of the hell hole that we now find ourselves. They will not simply because they want to accumulate enough time to qualify for pension. Nothing matters more.

    >

  9. Caswell Franklyn Avatar
    Caswell Franklyn

    Am I a standup person? I leave that for others to judge.

    >

  10. are-we-there-yet Avatar
    are-we-there-yet

    David;

    Where is the rest of the Cabinet Note?

    Was the Mangrove Pond Green Energy Programme comprised of only the three projects listed on the first page of the leaked Cabinet note?

    Is there any information out there on exactly what projects were planned for the mangrove pond green energy programme?

    The transition to the Cahill project from the proposed Landfill gas to energy facility needs to be explained. Something seems awry there.

    On the face of it, it seems that the Mangrove Pond Green Energy programme was a dream that might have been too good to be true with estimated initial capital costs of approximately 378 million bdos dollars generating over 1.42 billion dollars in revenue over 20 years.

    The big question that Government has to answer is how exactly did a relatively small component of the original MPGE programme morph into the Cahill monstrosity since a waste to energy facility seems not to have been envisaged in 2012 from what the partial leak above seems to suggest.

  11. David Avatar
    David

    @Dee Word

    Yes, if only we can find a way to poke ordinary Barbadians. It is so blatant yet educated Bajans appear not to notice how they are being hoodwinked by the political class who are doing the bidding of the money class.

  12. are-we-there-yet Avatar
    are-we-there-yet

    Caswell, I think the substantive point you are making is an excellent one. I would be interested in pinpointing when and how this situation arose and then persisted.

    For example, do you have data from about 1995 onwards on an annual basis on the total number of established posts of PS, DPS, and officers of equivalent grades; the number of appointed officers; the number of acting officers?

    Such statistics would nail the validity of the point you are making.

  13. Caswell Franklyn Avatar
    Caswell Franklyn

    AWTY

    I don’t have those details to hand. However, they might not matter because the Public Service Act which is being infringed only became effective on December 31, 2007. That act mandates that established posts in the Public Service must be filled within one year.

    >

  14. Bush Tea Avatar
    Bush Tea

    @ Caswell
    So are you telling Bushie that 25 of the MOST SENIOR public servants bout here are being treated like dogs on an ‘acting’ leash …. COMPLETELY AGAINST THE LAWS OF BARBADOS, …and that not a single fellow has had the balls to take the matter to court?
    …to come out publicly and raise a stink?
    …to at least ‘skin his ass’ at the Minister of the Public Service one evening after Parliament….?

    What kind of mice are these Caswell?
    How the donkey did these sheep become so senior Caswell…?

    WAIT!!!!
    ….or are these the same lackies that were pushed into these positions precisely BECAUSE they genuflect so willingly and graciously to our jackass ministers?

    Perhaps they are ‘acting’ because they can’t do the REAL damn jobs….
    Steupsss….. BBs

  15. watchman Avatar
    watchman

    @ Caswell Franklyn

    A PS in the Ministry of F A told me these words, go back and tell he, the Minister can’t make me do anything , Caswell you know that P S (Sam C ) become an ambassador from 2008 , an official of the B W A told me the Minister can tell you what he like he can’t do it
    Boyce was move from Education for standing up, were these men only seeing $$$$? you are right the actors can’t standup to the political Masters, the last time I saw Sir Lloyd in Jordan’s Supermarket ,I ask myself what does It profit a man to gain the world, as you said others can judge you , what about your soul? that is if you believed in the hereafter

  16. watchman Avatar
    watchman

    In this Ministry of Environment and Drainage, an officer took the Minister to court , so he tell me

  17. are-we-there-yet Avatar
    are-we-there-yet

    Watchman re. your 10:11 pm post;

    I think you should check some of the purported facts you mentioned there, especially re. “Sam C” and “Boyce”.

  18. are-we-there-yet Avatar
    are-we-there-yet

    Caswell;

    In addition to your point that a high proportion of PS’s are not being appointed to their posts illegally there is another factor that tends to ensure that acting PS’s are compliant with the wishes of their Ministers. It is that it appears that a high number of appointed PS’s have retired or been transferred to positions outside their comfort zones and those resultant vacant posts filled by persons who are not being appointed as required by law and who also might not have been satisfactorily prepared for such top posts and who might indeed be predominantly political lackeys as suggested by Bushtea.

    The overall result is a significant downgrading of public sector management and performance and might have led to much of the chaos seen in vastly diminished outputs over the last few years and indeed might be partially the reason why the Ministers and Permanent Secretaries needed to have met in retreat to iron out relationships recently.

    The Cahill matter could not have got off the ground if the Public Service was following established procedures.

  19. watchman Avatar
    watchman

    @ are-we-there yet

    Ok , Sam. C could have been the devil in the works under the BLP, but R Boyce was moved from his comfort zone in Education

  20. watchman Avatar
    watchman

    @ are-we-there-yet

    I know R Boyce was not a PS,

  21. Alvin Cummins Avatar
    Alvin Cummins

    @Caswell,

    Question. Why were these acting positions not filled before the elections in January 2008?
    Why did the Public Services Act you refer to only become effective in December 2007, just before the election in January 2008?

    @Watchman:

    “…so he tell me.”
    Perry Mason would tell you; “The facts, just the facts.” Hear- say is not “facts”.

  22. Hants Avatar
    Hants

    More heat!!!!

    http://www.nationnews.com/nationnews/news/71689/govt-shed-light-cahill-project

  23. de Ingrunt Word Avatar
    de Ingrunt Word

    Are-We, with respect to Bushie’s point that the Hollywood set are there by the grace of the elected Directors and thus perform accordingly, this Cahill movie and the other movies of our current Bajan life is really perfectly synchronized to your point of “the overall result is a significant downgrading of public sector management….”

    As you profoundly assert “the Cahill matter could not have got off the ground if the Public Service was following established procedures.”

  24. Prodigal Son Avatar
    Prodigal Son

    @ de Ingrunt Word August 30, 2015 at 11:48 AM #

    Are-We, with respect to Bushie’s point that the Hollywood set are there by the grace of the elected Directors and thus perform accordingly, this Cahill movie and the other movies of our current Bajan life is really perfectly synchronized to your point of “the overall result is a significant downgrading of public sector management….”
    ………………………………………….

    This certainly lends credence to the talk that Mark Maloney can walk into government offices and demand what he wants otherwise he will all the minister.

  25. Prodigal Son Avatar
    Prodigal Son

    Oops:

    he will call the minister.

  26. watchman Avatar
    watchman

    @ Alvin Cummins

    Yes ACs , I was a Messenger/Driver at an international organization, I can enlighten you

  27. watchman Avatar
    watchman

    @ Alvin Cummins

    Do you know an Official from the Drainage Unit who claim to be a standup man was being push out , and had to go to court

  28. Glennk Avatar
    Glennk

    If the government had passes this ticking time bomb to the correct government depts and allowed them to do their work this abomination would never have gotten off the ground.
    It not to late to allow them to do their jobs

  29. David Avatar
    David

    Didn’t the Prime Minister and the MoF confirm a couple years ago that the PM would head a sub-committee of parliament to ensure capital projects were delivered to time because efficient execution would have been critical to recovery of the economy?

  30. Glennk Avatar
    Glennk

    He may have but this Cahill thing has been lingering for 18 months and smells as bad as mount stinkaroo…
    How can you sign a contract and accept zero progress in 18 months
    It all stinks of fraud and corruption
    An penntless company doing $700million in work is an abomination.

  31. RastaR Avatar
    RastaR

    Looking at this Cahill energy scam the government also need to explain why there are no audited accounts for the company ???
    Lex caribean a supposedly reputable law firm here represents the company on the island and acts as company secretary . why are there no audited accounts on file for this shell company ????

    What services have been paid for through the Barbados company
    As how do they relate to the progression of the contract handed to this scammer on a plate??????

  32. Alvin Cummins Avatar
    Alvin Cummins

    @Glennk,

    Who “minutes” files and passes them on to the respective departments?

  33. Alvin Cummins Avatar
    Alvin Cummins

    @ Watchman,
    What was the result of the court case?

    @Glennk,
    Who says they are doing $700 million dollars in work? In big business you get someone else to do the work; design, build and operate. Cahill is a “facilitator”; for which they are paid. If I have a company I don’t audit my own books. I get a chartered accountant or a qualified auditor to do the auditing.
    The original tender advertised for “expressions of interest” it was not for construction.

  34. David Avatar
    David

    @Alvin

    All agree the configuration of the Cahill WtE plant does not accord with the expression of interest to which you have referred.

  35. RastaR Avatar
    RastaR

    How many shell companies qualify to do government work with a profile like Cahill
    My money is zero.
    What qualifies Cahill as a facilitator ???
    The government could have just as easily facilitated this using local companies and the in-house qualified public servants
    Why would you pay a no experience no balance sheet no leadership skills company to manage and facilitate $700m worth of work and make tens of millions of dollars that should have stayed on the island
    You’re niave in your logic

  36. RastaR Avatar
    RastaR

    @alvin
    Most tax paying companies have a statutory obligation to file audited tax returns which Cahill have delibertly have avoided doing
    Also clearly you don’t run your own company so youre I’ll qualified to comment on tax and fiduciary responsibilities of companies and company directors

    This Cahill thing is unambiguously set up to scamm and skim money off what should be a revenue stream for this government and the people of Barbados

  37. watchman Avatar
    watchman

    @!Alvin Cummins

    If you need to know the result or the court case , ask the Minister / PS they should know, I only stated it to show how the contrived ways the Ministry of the Environment And Drainage Unit are affected by persons with no integrity, who are in positions of authority that can cause a country citizens to suffered, even though I see you are no different, proof me wrong, go to blog(Pat Brayshaw matter not forgotten letter to Minister Denis Lowe ) read , try to understand and post , if you can

  38. Alvin Cummins Avatar
    Alvin Cummins

    @RastaR,
    I ran my own business (company) FOR OVER TEN YEARS, before I came back here.

    “…to manage and facilitate $700m worth of work and make tens of millions of dollars that should have stayed on the island.”
    WHAT FOOLISHNESS ARE YOU TALKING? THE PLANT HAS NOT YET BEEN DESIGNED AND BUILT, IT IS NOT ESTIMATED TO COST 700 MILLION DOLLARS-A FIGURE PULLED OUT OF THE SKY BY THOSE OPPOSED TO THE PROJECT AND FOISTED AS A COST, AND THE OTHER THING PULLED OUT OF THE SKY; …TENS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS that should have stayed on the island”. No money has been paid to anybody, as far as I know. Don’t spread false rumours.

  39. RastaR Avatar
    RastaR

    Youre right
    Running hotdogstands for 10 years outside a subwaystation more than qualifies you to be a waste to energy plant guru.
    And considering the selection criteria being used to select companies to execute multimillion dollar projects the government numptys should have selected you instead of Cahill energy
    Seems you have the same qualifications.
    ie none required !!!!!!!!!!

  40. Glennk Avatar
    Glennk

    @alvin
    You’re right about one thing
    ” no money has been paid to anyone ”
    Simply because she is broke
    She has no money !!!
    She has duped people for 2 plus years with the carrot of a big payout once she sells this opportunity on
    This company is essentially insolvent
    And as such the government should not be dealing with her
    Hence the need for audited accounts filed.
    If you were to run a D&B on this company there would be a warning flag flashing on the screen saying “do not do business with this company”
    There is no D&B on this company simply because it was done off shore for that very reason
    Maybe Guernsey trading standards need to be advised of how this company is being operated

  41. Glennk Avatar
    Glennk

    http://www.dnb.co.uk
    A tool everyone uses in business to track the performance of companies the are or want to do business with
    Cahill like everything else is flying below the radar to avoid negative ratings being visible to the government investors and the business community
    Normally in a tendering process your DNB score is a kpi used to determine your viability and your credit worthiness
    If Cahill is so squeaky clean this information would be visible to us

    If she thinks her shite doesn’t stink she’s wrong

  42. Experian Avatar
    Experian

    What about the millions and millions of dollars the SSA is/has to pay out to Moorjani, the contractors for the new SSA headquarters, a project stalled for the last 10 months because the MOF refuses to give the company the Letter of Comfort contractually required and approved by Cabinet? No Letter of Comfort means the contractor cannot secure the funding to build out the project so SSA will be saddled with BDS$500,000.00 month until the MOF issues the letter.
    WHAT’S THE GOING RATE FOR A LETTER OF COMFORT THESE DAYS?

  43. Mockingbird Avatar
    Mockingbird

    It’s the first day of September
    Have we started yet????
    She is a cumulative liar
    As Alvin did point out its not designed yet
    She is clueless
    What’s the next lie ??? It’s the economic climate otherwise we would have the investors here
    Deluded and in denial!!!!!!!!

  44. Mockingbird Avatar
    Mockingbird

    Letter of comfort as a contractual obligation hmmmm thats unusual???
    If it is there in the contract then the contractor needs to envoke the contract remedies clauses
    If it $500k a month then we are stuffed as usual
    Ministers directly managing contracts is a nonsense.

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