Defendant in Light bulb case awarded government contract

[Lazie]

Wednesday, 26 November 2008

One of the three persons jointly accused of defrauding the government of more than quarter of a billion dollars in the Cuban light bulb case has landed a major contract with the Ministry of Transport and Works.

The selection of Chin's Construction, a company to which Rodney Chin is affiliated, is to receive a major government contract two months before the start of a fraud trial against him has raised many eyebrows.

Mr. Chin, 44, who is facing fraud charges along with Kern Spencer and Colleen Wright, is one of ten contractors who Tuesday received contracts with the Ministry of Transport and Works collectively worth over a billion dollars.

Chin's Construction is among several companies that have been contracted by the government to carry out major works on gullies and drains in the Corporate Area as well as an Island wide road-patching programme.

Mr. Chin, along with former State Minister, Kern Spencer and his Personal Assistant, Coleen Wright, are facing Fraud and Money Laundering charges in connection with the multi-million dollar Cuban light bulb case.

Rodney Chin is listed as Managing Director of Universal Management and Development Limited and Caribbean Communications Media Network Limited, the company that received the contract to distribute the bulbs island wide.

The trial against Chin, Spencer and Wright is set begin on January 11 next year.

http://www.radiojamaica.com/content/view/13599/26/

[Lazie]

NWA awarded contract to Chin’s Construction – Henry

Thursday, 27 November 2008

Mike Henry Transport and Works Minister is trying to ward off brewing controversy surrounding his Ministry granting a contract to one of the accused in the Cuban Light Bulb Scandal.

On Wednesday, RJR News broke the story that Chin's Construction Limited, a company to which Rodney Chin is affiliated, received a major Government contract, two months before the start of a fraud trial against him.

The issue has raised eyebrows and triggered questions of ethics.

In an interview with our news centre Wednesday night Mr. Henry said he was not directly involved in the selection of Chin's Construction.

According to him, the contract was issued by the National Works Agency (NWA), in keeping with Government procurement guidelines.

Mr. Henry added that he had no encounter with Mr. Chin prior to Tuesday's issuing of the contract to his company.

"I do not choose contractors, they're chosen by the procurement method and by the NWA officers who are out there measuring and issuing the work to the contractors who follow the procurement procedures and are registered with the NWA ... I've never met Mr. Chin before, I did not know who he was until I met him there (at the signing) as Chin's construction."

Mr. Henry said his Ministry couldn't answer the question of whether the granting of the contract to Mr. Chin's company was ethical.

According to the Minister, the matter will have to be addressed at the policy level and could have implications for the granting of Government contracts.

"So the extent to which anything else relates will have to be a policy decision which I think will be going there and I think beyond the sense of what is required in the procedure of awarding contracts."

Mr. Chin, who is facing fraud charges along with Kern Spencer and Colleen Wright, is one of ten contractors who on Tuesday received contracts with the Ministry of Transport and Works collectively worth over $1 billion.

Chin's Construction is among several companies that have been contracted by the Government to carry out major works on gullies and drains in the Corporate Area as well as an island wide road-patching programme.

Chin's Construction one of the best - Allen

Meanwhile, an official of the Transport and Works Ministry is defending the granting of the contract to Chin's Construction.

According to Reginald Allen, Communications Consultant in the Ministry, the company had since the 1980's received several state contracts and had gained a track record.

"Once you are registered with the Contracts Commission and the other areas of eligibility such as tax compliance, there's no basis excepting for performance (for one not to be awarded a contract) and in fact the company is one of the more experienced and reliable Grade Two contractors' around." said Mr. Allen who was speaking on RJR's daily current affairs discussion programme Beyond the Headlines on Wednesday.

Mr. Allen added that there are very few Grade Two and Grade Three level contractors available who are able to manage certain specifications in terms of executing these contracts.