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– but no evidence of tendersAHI’s head, Winston BrassingtonGovernment is reportedly paying more than US$1M ($200M) for the supervision of the Marriott-branded hotel that it is building at Kingston, but there is no immediate evidence that the consultancy was ever advertised.The US$51M project has been generating controversy and although in full construction mode at its Kingston location, the many burning questions have been keeping government on the back foot.It is the norm that large projects of the state would be supervised by either Government engineers or a firm hired for this specific purpose.This is so for the $3B relief canal that is built at Hope, East Coast Demerara, and the access roads to the Amaila Falls hydro project.The lucrative US$1M contract to supervise the hotel’s construction was reportedly awarded under unclear circumstances to one Ramesh Budhram, who is reportedly based in the US.However, checks on the websites of the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) and Government’s eprocure.gov.gy, which advertises government contracts, did not find any such vacancies. As a matter of fact, NPTAB’s website was down.Under the country’s laws, contracts for certain amounts have to be tendered and after bids from the interested parties are submitted it is then analysed.Government has been declining questions recently on the Marriott as several embarrassing revelations were made.A few weeks ago, news that locals were not hired in the initial phase sparked a number of protests.Head of the Atlantic Hotel Inc. (AHI), Winston Brassington, said that a lack of skills and language barriers were the reasons.AHI’s responsibilitiesGovernment spokesman, Dr. Roger Luncheon, later added another reason…that the contractor has the discretion or powers to hire or import its own employees.According to business columnist/accountant, Christopher Ram, in Sunday’s column in the Stabroek News, a contract of this magnitude should have a Quality Manager whose primary responsibility is to meet quality Assurance/quality specifications.He argued that because contractors would naturally be more interested in maximising profits by reducing costs, it makes even more important that AHI which is overseeing the project on behalf of government to ensure that value for the dollar is achieved for Guyana.“…and so AHI must satisfy itself and specify the steps embedded in the process to ensure that quality assurance and quality control matches the agreed plans and specifications.”AHI would have needed to ensure, even before construction started, that it had in place a team to manage the construction supervision, including the engineer who will sign off on the final product and approve design changes.With the contract to SCG more than likely spelling out the specifications of how the hotel is to be built, supervision is more than important, he said.Ram asked: “It is true that we negotiated on price. The question now is whether AHI knows whether it has compromised on quality.”The entire project, from the inception when it was announced was met with skepticism as it was the government that is investing a significant sum for a project that is not clear.Government recently, in startling statements, said that it was the intention all along to sell it once it is completed.The government has so far been pouring taxpayers’ money into the US$52 million project.In 2011, government approved US$10M in an advance to SCG. Another US$25M representing the sale of the 20 per cent stake that government had in the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company, has already been collected by the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL), the parent company of AHI.NICIL is the government arm that manages state properties but whose transactions have come under the spotlight in recent years because it’s spending of billions of dollars was not scrutinized from the inception by the National Assembly which has oversight of public funds.Private sector oversightFinance and industry sources say the project is a high risk one,Cheap Jerseys From China, given that existing hotels are struggling to fill their rooms, but government remained adamant and is pressing ahead.The opposition had voted to halt public funding of the project and it says that it wants the so-called confidential documents released to the public.The 197-room hotel will include a restaurant, casino and entertainment facilities.Yesterday, the Guyana-China Business Council, a private sector arm, said that current tensions involving Chinese companies prompted an extraordinary meeting on Friday. Noting that Chinese investments have proven crucial, Chairman Clinton Williams warned that such investments must be continually implemented in accordance with “exigent social and economic requirements and within the confines of international best practice for technological transfer, training and other mandates.”The council said that as a result, it intends to amplify the scope of its oversight and facilitation mandate in order to ensure that China-based companies engaged in business in Guyana are sufficiently familiar with Guyana’s Labour Laws and that there is across-the-board compliance.The council also urged the local media to avoid “publishing unsubstantiated information which has the capacity to create fear that in itself presents a security dilemma and could diminish foreign investors’ interest in injecting much needed foreign capital into this country”.There has been a rash of criticisms of government and its contracts which have been awarded to Chinese firms.