Suggestions for the 'enterprise team'

The Editor, Sir:

Now that the prime minister has been forced by circumstances to assume leadership of the 381-megawatt project, on behalf of all Jamaicans suffering under high energy prices, I would like to challenge her to show her true mettle.

It might be too much to ask our prime minister to ignore the raw political advantages to be had from a project of this size, or the large feeding trough that a US$700M power-plant development could mean for party associates and activists.

The prime minister must, however, be concerned at this stage in her political career about her legacy. There is hardly a better gift that she could leave poor Jamaicans who voted for her than cheaper electricity that can get the economy growing and create jobs. To do that, the prime minister must rescue the project and, along with the private sector, convince Jamaicans and restore international confidence in our ability to handle procurements of this magnitude and complexity. Surely, potential investors in the logistics hub and our other grand ventures are looking on.

Procurement process

Apart from getting the power plant finally going, the prime minister must safeguard the selection process from even the scent of corruption, favouritism or cronyism. For that, the prime minister must take a very close, personal interest and give serious consideration to the character, expertise, independence and integrity of the enterprise team to be selected to join Dr Vin Lawrence, and insist on having the final say.

Madam Prime Minister, please seek out Jamaicans who have the proven expertise that the team will need, are above the fray, and have no interest in the outcome beyond seeing Jamaica move forward. If I may suggest, there are at least four outstanding Jamaicans who I can readily think of who fit that bill. They are:

1. Douglas Orane, retired CEO of GraceKennedy, whose business track record and public service is well known.

2. Winston Hay, the former director general of the Office of Utilities Regulation (OUR) and a renowned power engineer with the World Bank, who evaluated projects like these. Mr Hay would bring regulatory and power-plant knowledge to the team.

3. Ian Blair, the former senior vice-president of the Port Authority of Jamaica who was in charge of the infrastructure build-out under the port expansion. Mr Blair would be able to make sense of schedules and logistics in proposals put forward.

4. Bill Clarke, the former managing director of Scotiabank, would add a depth of financial knowledge to the team.

Resist the familiar names and faces, Prime Minister. Be enterprising in selecting your enterprise team, for your legacy and Jamaica's sake.

Sean Walker

Kingston 5