Opposition demands clarity over East Coast roadworks amid delays, cost concerns

The Mottley administration came under increased scrutiny over the transparency and effectiveness of its East Coast roadworks, as Leader of the Opposition Ralph Thorne claimed mounting public debt and persistent delays in delivering promised infrastructure improvements.

He cautioned that Barbadians are bearing the financial burden of loans without visible or sustainable development in return.

Speaking in Parliament on Tuesday, Thorne, who criticised the government’s debt profile, zeroed in on the $264 million Scotland District Road Rehabilitation Programme, funded in 2022 through a $230 million loan from the Exim Bank of China.

He questioned whether the works, focused largely on the East Coast, were progressing on schedule and free of structural issues, suggesting that some of the work may be failing even as it is underway.

“There’s a lot of building going on in that East Coast project, and it’s that building sometimes collapsing,” he said.

“Is the East Coast road project being managed in such a way that it is progressing without fault? Or is that work being done in such a way that it has not been able to sustain itself?”

The ambitious rehabilitation project was launched to tackle long-standing road damage and land slippage in the Scotland District, beginning with the Ermie Bourne Highway in St Andrew and later extending into St John and St Joseph.

A six-kilometre stretch between Bath and Andromeda Gardens is now being addressed in three phases, with work underway to rebuild road surfaces and improve drainage systems.

But delays have been reported, partly due to heavy rains and the challenging terrain.

Thorne suggested that the public is being left in the dark about the project’s true status and called on the government to end what he described as a “shroud of secrecy”.

“If the government wants to refer to the East Coast project, let the government come and tell the people of Barbados precisely what is happening in relation to it. When will it finish?” he questioned.

“I will not accuse anyone of negligence, but what I will do is ask this government to meet its obligation to report to the people of Barbados, and to make a firm declaration.”

The opposition leader, who has long questioned the effectiveness of the country’s debt management, charged that while the public has been made aware of government borrowing and the stated purposes of those loans, the promised improvements, particularly in infrastructure, have not always materialised.

“This government has not been able to prove the development that ought to have sprung from its borrowing. The people of Barbados have not, in all cases, been seeing the development,” he said.

He also warned that the cost of the debt incurred, such as for the East Coast rehabilitation, would not only burden taxpayers today, but also generations to come.

“Not only are the loans costing Barbadians today, but they will cost a future generation tomorrow,” Thorne said.

(SM)