1. In 2001, the Prime Ministers vehicle was a white Mercedes Benz, I believe it was licenced as G1. That car began to give trouble about 5-6 years into its lifespan, and sometimes wasnt used because of its unsuitability for certain terrain. (I dont recall whether that Benz was purchased by Prime Minister Arnhim Eustace in 2000 or by PM Gonsalves when he came to office in 2001). 2. In 2006/7 that car became the cadaver which is used by automotive students at the Community Colleges technical division. It continues its life today as a teaching tool. 3. In 2007, the Prime Minister, in an SVU that was BORROWED from another department, was involved in a serious automobile accident that resulted in the Prime Minister being severely injured and hospitalised. That vehicle, I believe, was written off (subject to correction). 4. The next vehicle purchased for the Prime Minister was in the wake of the accident. Given the accident, and the terrain of SVG, the view was that the PM should get the safest reasonably priced SUV available. That was, in the opinion of the civil servants, a Volvo XC90 (licenced G7). The Volvo, in that model year, had better crash safety ratings than similarly-priced SUVS. 5. At the time, it was the first Volvo XC90 in SVG. The opposition ranted about its exorbitant price, even alleging it cost up to $1 million!! Today, there are another 2-4 XC90s on the road -- presumably all owned by local millionaires!! LOL (a new XC90 actually costs US$36,000 - $45,000). 6. SEVEN YEARS into its lifespan, the Volvo started giving trouble, mechanically. Remember that that SUV is probably one of the most driven cars in SVG, taking the PM to every corner of Saint Vincent -- often places that dont even have paved roads. The cost of repairing the vehicle, and its ongoing reliability, became an issue. 7. For the last 3-4 months, the PM has been driven in a KIA SUV, BORROWED from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade, Commerce and Information Tech.. That KIA was donated to the Ministry for use in protocol matters (picking up visiting dignitaries, etc). All of our astute journalists somehow missed or did not report on the fact that the PM was in a borrowed KIA for the last 3-4 months. Even at the infamous Lynch funeral, journalists reported that the PM was lounging outside the church in G77 when in fact he arrived later in the KIA (G624) and walked right into the church. 8. After 7 years of the Volvos faithful service, and 3-4 months of the borrowed KIA, the Prime Minister received a new vehicle, a Toyota Prado. The Prado is not the top-of-the-line model. Standard engine. Fabric interior. Basic stereo. No rear seat entertainment. etc. (Still a nice ride, though ) I hope that the opposition breaks its parliamentary boycott to show up in the House of Assembly and query this allegedly exorbitant example of heartless official profligacy.
Posted on: Tue, 18 Nov 2014 17:20:07 +0000
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