Oh gosh, another contract to the Chinese?

THE EDITOR: Just about two months ago, there was such an outcry in our fairytale country that Government cancelled a contract with the Chinese firm who were supposed to build 5,000 housing units.

The Minister of Finance is now boasting about yet another questionable contract with the Chinese, (Beijing Construction Engineering Group) whereby we are borrowing a further $700 million, to build about 60-80 factory shells. I do not know the details, size or specifications of these units, but the math works out at about $10 million per unit.

Wow! That’s excessive and we do not know if Government has provided the land for free. I would love to see the details of this agreement. Not to mention that we already have idle industrial estates.

So again hold on, just as with the Gezhou­ba Group In­ter­na­tion­al En­gi­neer­ing Co Ltd, and the 5,000 housing units. We have civil engineers and architects. We have qualified contractors, we have manufacturers who can supply all the building and engineering products needed to build these units,

But we have to contract the Chinese, where TT citizens will have no employment, and where all the materials will come from China, so that a further US$100 million will leave our shores.

Come on, TT! Afra Raymond, the Architects Association, APETT, TTMA, TT Chamber...let your voices be heard! Why are we giving our scarce resources to the Chinese? Come on, Government, let our architects, engineers, contractors, manufacturers and banks in on some of this action.

STUART DALGLIESH

Diego Martin