Duke slams 'back-to-front' Scarborough Sec sod-turning

Progressive Democratic Patriots (PDP) leader Watson Duke has criticised January 19's sod-turning ceremony for the new Scarborough Secondary School.

THA Chief Secretary Farley Augustine, Education Secretary Zorisha Hackett and the division's administrator Diane Baker Henry turned the sod at Bacolet Park, alongside students and staff of the school.

At a press conference at the PDP office in Scarborough on January 22, Duke said the sod-turning was "back-to-front-ish," as there were few details about the project.

Augustine was unable to reveal the cost of the project, only saying it would be "quite a tidy sum, a huge sum.”

Pressed by the media for an estimate, Augustine said he could not give a figure, as a tender for the project will be going out before the end of January. He added, "The engineers, and whomever is in procurement, they will come up with their internal estimates."

Augustine said the new school will feature an administrative block, computer and IT rooms, a multi-media centre, pan theatre, and an audio-visual room, among other offerings.

He said the school, which will be built by Central Government, will occupy a gross area of 16,840 square metres, the internal area being 10,909 square metres.

Duke, who removed Augustine as PDP deputy leader in September 2022, after a disagreement, was unimpressed by Augustine's comments.

"A few months ago our Chief Secretary was saying to the Prime Minister, 'Stay out of Tobago's business,' but on January 19 his language changed. He gathered himself with his acolytes and they claimed to be turning the sod for the new Scarborough Secondary School building.

"Never in the history of Tobago sod-turning ceremonies has it ever been done so poorly and so back-to-front-ish. Here you see members of the higher echelons of the THA turning the sod by themselves, with themselves.

"Where is the project team? Where is the contractor?

"There was no plan (for) what this building would look like. They knew the amount of square footage, they knew the amount of lands available – 27 acres, but they claim the building to be built for Scarborough Secondary School would be just under five acres.

"What would become of the other 22 acres of land that was bought for the secondary school?"

He said Augustine's being in the dark about the cost of the project painted Tobago in a bad light and made it look weak.

He noted that Augustine said the project would be done by Central Government, and questioned why there was no representative from Central Government at the sod-turning. He said their presence would have reassured Tobagonians about their commitment to the project.

"Things like that make Tobago weak to the international community and Central Government. We operate as glad boys and boy-toys with no sense of direction, only something to be trifled with and played with and let down when they are fed up of us."