The motion down for debate at Thursday’s Senate sitting sought approval for government to borrow US$20 million for the St. Jude Redevelopment Project. Two days earlier—after hours of debate mostly filled with the usual finger-pointing and casting blame, much of it heard and seen countless times before—the motion had been passed in the House of Assembly. The current government began construction on a new wing at the Vieux Fort site last year, stating that the existing structures “were not built up to standards for a hospital”.
At a press briefing in January this year, Permanent Secretary in the Department of Economic Development, Mr. Claudius Emmanuel, identified December 2020 as the potential opening date. Independent Senator Mauricia Thomas-Francis began her presentation on Thursday by quoting Luke 14:28. “But don’t begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first calculating the cost, to see if there is enough money to finish it?”
She lamented that while the Senate was being asked to approve a US$20 million loan, the total cost of the project had not been provided. She reminded fellow senators that they were seeking to approve this loan in 2020, over ten years since the redevelopment project began. The obvious suggestion was that there were significant mistakes made, she said, which were related to “ineffective project management”.
The senator’s main focus was that of accountability for the over EC$100 million spent on the project since 2009. She said citizens were suffering from subject matter fatigue. Moreover, that she was enervated by the constant bickering and finger-pointing over the years by both sides of the House. Meanwhile, she observed, “No one takes responsibility for what went wrong.” She asserted that Saint Lucians no longer want to hear “who did what, who should’ve done what, and who didn’t do what”. What citizens expect and voted for, she said, is accountability.
The senator bemoaned that to this day there has not been a commission of inquiry in this matter—which is what is most required. “We waste over $100 million on a project,” she said, “and to this day we cannot tell the country what value we’ve created for that money. We behave as if we’re a rich country. Are we a rich country? Do we have the resources to claim that we’re a rich country; that we can afford to waste over $100 million without giving an account?”
Said the senator: “The fiasco and the wastage of over $100 million is an indictment on both sides, and we are fed up of all the bickering. We are fed up! The people of this country deserve proper healthcare. I believe they have waited long enough. I believe they have suffered long enough.” Thomas-Francis implored all parliamentarians to learn from what had obviously gone wrong, lest the same mistakes recur.
In 2018 the government announced that upon assuming office in 2016, “several irregularities” were uncovered that demanded further examination. Among the pressing matters, the “costly St. Jude project”. The government said all public officials should give full account of their stewardship, and always be willing to answer questions on matters related to their tenure. That has not happened, and certainly not in relation to St.Jude.
