Muddy journey for rural buses

Transport Minister Daryl Vaz says his ministry is the importer of 110 used school buses for the rural transportation programme and not energy company Elhydro Limited.

Vaz, in a social media post following a statement from his Ministry of Science, Energy, Telecommunications and Transport (MSETT), would go on to maintain this position while acknowledging a letter written to him by the Trade Board, saying it granted approval for Elhydro to import the buses on the ministry’s behalf.

The Trade Board’s indication is in a May 27, 2025 letter from Chairman Danville Walker, who said he was responding to a letter from Vaz dated May 20.

“ Approval has been granted to ELHYDRO to import one hundred and ten (110) buses on behalf of the Ministry of Science, Energy, Telecommunications, and Transport (MSETT) for the rural school bus transportation program,” the letter states.

Walker further confirmed that “ all necessary administrative support” had been extended to Elhydro to register on the Jamaica Single Window for Trade (JSWiFT) platform, ensuring a “ smooth application process” for import permits.

The letter is titled ‘ Permission to Import One Hundred and Ten (110) New Buses’. The Trade Board told The Sunday Gleaner that use of the word ‘new’ was “an error in the drafting of the letter” and that it was not used in the body of the letter and “was not material to the processes or procedures to be followed by the MSETT”.

In a public statement issued after yesterday’s Sunday Gleaner reported on the arrangement, Vaz stated that the ministry was the importer of the buses and did not mention Walker’s letter.

He also published the import licence, which names the ministry as the importer and was approved June 23, 2025. The Government is paying $1.4 billion to buy and retrofit the buses.

It is standard in government for ministries, departments, or agencies to act as importers on behalf of private suppliers, in certain circumstances, to facilitate customs clearance and reduce fees.

“ The Ministry of Science, Energy, Telecommunications, and Transport is the documented licensed importer of all buses brought into Jamaica under the Government’s Rural School Bus initiative,” the ministry said. “ El Hydro acted as the supplier for the Ministry, given that they are the sole approved agent in Jamaica and the rest of the Caribbean for the dealer/manufacturer of the make/model buses which were imported.”

The ministry’s statement did not address Sunday Gleaner questions about the procurement structure and whether the use of Elhydro, a company not certified as a motor vehicle dealer, was intended to sidestep restrictions in Jamaica’s import policy.

The 2014 Motor Vehicle Import Policy allows uncertified entities to bring in only three vehicles every three years, with restrictions on resale and transfer. The Trade Board told The Sunday Gleaner that Elhydro is not a certified dealer of either new or used vehicles and that it had also been issued a permit to import three vehicles under that policy.

Despite that, the company was granted a special waiver to import 110 used buses without the required pre-shipment inspection certificates (PSICs), following a request from the ministry.

“ The MVIC [Motor Vehicle Import Committee] considered the request of the Ministry … for the importation of 110 buses without the accompanying PSIC certificates,” the Trade Board said in response to questions from The Sunday Gleaner. “ After considering the compelling circumstances, the MVIC recommended that the import permit/licence should be granted.”

The PSIC is a mandatory safeguard designed to ensure that used vehicles imported into Jamaica are safe, roadworthy, and meet biosecurity standards. The Trade Board said the Island Traffic Authority (ITA) was expected to inspect the buses on arrival.

At a press conference last week, Vaz did not disclose the waiver or the fact that Elhydro was not certified. He said more than two dozen buses had already arrived, and the full fleet of 110 would be in the island by the end of July. A further 200 to 300 are expected in a second phase.

“We did not buy buses based on pictures,” Vaz said. “We sent a team from the JUTC, along with the supplier, to go and inspect and select the buses that we deemed and [thought] suitable for Jamaica.”

Elhydro, whose main business is industrial lubricants and chemicals, said it submitted an “unsolicited proposal” for the school bus project. Company Director Phillip Scott told The Sunday Gleaner that the company had the overseas dealership connections necessary to procure the buses.

“Anyone can buy and import buses,” he said. “It’s a matter of knowing what to look for and when.”

Scott insisted the proposal had no political motivation, and said Elhydro has “a well-documented history” in transportation. Since 2020, the company has received at least two government contracts worth over $550 million, including one to supply biodiesel to the JUTC.

Used car dealers have also expressed concern about the decision to waive pre-shipment inspection requirements.

“The dealers are wondering why. They are wondering why there were no pre-shipment inspections, given the age of the vehicles. They find it quite strange,” said Lynvale Hamilton, president of the Jamaica Used Car Dealers Association.

Jovan Johnson and Kimone Francis