Health secretary: Use of expletive was to drive a point

THA SECRETARY of Health, Wellness and Social Protection Dr Faith Brebnor has admitted to using an expletive while talking to a driver assigned to the public health services department at Signal Hill, Tobago.

However, she denied abusing the worker, insisting that her use of the word was in a casual conversation to make a point.

Brebnor was contributing to a motion calling on THA divisions to promote a culture of continuous improvement and professional development, at the plenary sitting, Assembly Legislature, Scarborough, on February 27.

Wane Clarke, Assistant Secretary, Division of Community Development, Youth Development and Sport, moved the motion.

Brebnor said she had not planned to speak about the issue at the sitting but felt compelled to do so.

“I recognise that my name and my face has been plastered all over the place and I had to decide, Madam Presiding Officer (Abby Taylor) whether I would address it or not. But I am going to and I am going to because what we are talking about here is productivity,” she said.

Brebnor said, on February 25 she visited the public health department at Signal Hill, “because I needed to ensure that the organisation that I manage is productive.”

She said the refurbishment of the work site is listed among the THA’s 44 priority projects.

Brebnor said the refurbishment work at Signal Hill includes the creation of a task-force structure, because the current facility is worse than a cow-shed.

“Where the employees are working is not the best conditions.”

She continued, “Because I know that this is a workplace where people sit everyday and because I know that this is a priority project of the Tobago House of Assembly where we are going to spend probably $9 million, I took it upon myself to speak to the employees there to let them know we coming to the end of signing the contract. We are going to get the work started just now. Don’t be surprised when you see mobilisation happening up there.”

Brebnor, a public health practitioner, said she told them that the impending construction would affect how they work.

“I said to them, ‘This is me and allyuh talking. We are going to have an honest conversation.'

"We had an honest conversation, Madam Presiding Officer.”

She said one of the men, a driver, came to the meeting in a pair of slippers.

“I actually think he had on a shoes and because he see me he put on the slippers to make a point, because he does not have the appropriate boots. So we actually had a full conversation about that, Madam Presiding Officer...”

Brebnor said there are challenges with the new procurement law.

“The new procurement laws says that even if the OSH (Occupational Safety and Health) officer thinks that this specific brand of boots is the best brand because it has these requirements, the foreman or the senior officer can’t put the name of the brand. They have to describe the boot and hope that when procurement goes out, procurement gets that specific brand of that specific boot because that is what is needed.

“Somehow that conversation did not really happen so that when the foremen said, ‘We need boots’ and procurement went out and buy boots, the boots that came were the wrong boots.

“We spent the money, which means that for us to have to buy boots for him again we have to get the money. And yes, I did say I have to pull it out meh (expletive)…because we have to find the money again after we went through the process to get the boots – because we buy it already.”

Brebnor said the issue boiled down to productivity.

She said that same morning, around seven o’clock, she learnt that employees couldn’t get to their job because the worker who was driving the vehicle couldn’t get to the keys.

“So a whole set of workmen sitting waiting for the bus to come and the bus cannot move because the key for the bus (missing), wherever the key for the bus is, and we have lost an entire day.”