A public war of words has developed between former Port Authority of T&T chairman Christine Sahadeo and current acting Port CEO Charmaine Lewis following their appearances during Joint Select Committee looking into the ferry service.
So much so that Sahadeo wants to reappear before the next JSC session to defend herself against “the inaccuracies being made about me...”
Sahadeo, who appeared before the JSC on Monday, complained of issues at the Port involving management officials, although she was also the subject of criticism by former board member Ferdie Ferreira.
During yesterday’s JSC, acting Port CEO Lewis refuted Sahadeo’s allegations. She said there’d been a “lot of interference” by the former chairman (Sahadeo). Lewis said Sahadeo felt maintenance dredging at the port ought to have been done and be done by Kallco - but management disagreed as Kallco didn’t have such experience.
Lewis also accused Sahadeo of changing minutes of meetings and acting as executive chairman.
“She was always behind the scenes going counter to management, everything Ferdie Ferreira said (about her) was true,” Lewis told the JSC members.
Lewis said Sahadeo was allowed to make denigrating statements on Monday and Port management wasn’t present. “I wrote the Minister about her, so I’m not making denigrating statements,” Lewis said.
But in an immediate response, Sahadeo, who told T&T Guardian she’s trying to reappear before the JSC - which next meets in Port-of-Spain September 18 - to defend herself, said, “I didn’t interfere.”
She added, “On one issue, I can say the board took a decision to reissue the tenders to participants of the previous tender to prevent legal challenges.
“When it went out and we reviewed tenders, we realised certain previous participants were left out. The question was asked how could a decision by the board not be followed by management?”
Sahadeo said she was also standing by her claim on Monday that nine senior Port managers had sought Lewis’ removal. She said this was done in the presence of two other officials.
Bridgemans to set up local shop
Yesterday’s JSC session revealed that it was “proposed” to Bridgemans Services Ltd - owners of the controversial Ocean Flower 2 and Cabo Star - that they set up a local company and hire people to please its T&T client.
Bridgemans’ local agent Lester Kenny, who confirmed this, said the company is still in the process of setting up the local company.
He said it was proposed that because Bridgemans received the ferry contract and, “you appreciate, we’ve been brutalised by the media and it was suggested we could incorporate a company to hire people to kind of inject a good relation to the client which (sic)we were desperately trying to please, under all the stress we been under.”
He didn’t say who proposed the idea.
Bridgemans vice president Andrew Purdey said he was first contacted in April by international broker Horizon, which stated there was something of interest in T&T.
His first official contact with the Works Ministry was in May. The Cabo Star and Ocean Flower 2 were bought this year on completion of the TT contract, Purdey said.
Bridgemans was registered in 2013. He gave a Vancouver address for operation offices (with six staffers and 100 across Bridgemans’ profile) and corporate offices in Norton Rose Fulbright.
Purdey said Bridgemans was still hoping to work with the Port Authority and Ministry of Works and Transport on the Ocean Flower 2 deal for “co-operative outcome.”
Sounding testy, he also complained about T&T media, adding he wanted to bring the ferry matter to an end as it was “frustrating.” He refused to talk to reporters afterwards.