OCG wants answers

DAYS AFTER it was revealed that a one-kilometre Christiana bypass road is costing taxpayers $800 million, the Office of the Contractor General (OCG) has demanded details from the National Works Agency (NWA).

In a letter dated June 3 to NWA Chief Executive Officer Patrick Wong, the OCG requested that the information be provided by noon of Friday, June 10.

The roadway, which is in the North East Manchester constituency of Audley Shaw, is being constructed under the US$400 million Jamaica Infrastructure Development Programme (JDIP).

The NWA boss is also being asked to submit to the OCG an executive summary setting out the reasons for the "seemingly high construction cost for the project, and the rationale for selecting the project under JDIP if there was sufficient evidence that the overall cost of the project would have been abnormally high".