Attorney threatens legal action over Creek collapse

Attorney Richard Jagessar said he has filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) enquiry asking for specific details about the contract, and whether there was a warranty clause that prevents more taxpayers’ funds from being used to rectify the apparent flaws in the project.

RADHICA DE SILVA
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With no disclosures given on the cause of the collapse of Mosquito Creek, an attorney has been hired to take legal action against the National Infrastructure Development Corporation (NIDCO) and the Ministry of Works.

During a press conference at the Creek on Wednesday, attorney Richard Jagessar said he has filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) enquiry asking for specific details about the contract, and whether there was a warranty clause that prevents more taxpayers’ funds from being used to rectify the apparent flaws in the project.

“We asked for a copy of the investigative report, and we will tell the court whether bad work was done and whether technical civil engineers approved the work,” Jagessar said.

He added: “Something has gone wrong and if they will not tell us, we will get to the bottom of it. We will hire our own investigators and we will put every civil engineer at work on the stand in court if we have to,” Jagessar said.

“We are asking whether the public funds will be used to fix this problem. We want to know whether NIDCO paid money to approve the specs and whether the contractor has any warranty owed to us. We want to know whether the government had the public interest at heart by putting a warranty clause in the contract. Are we expected to foot this bill?” Jagessar said.

President of the Woodland Flood Action Group, Adesh Singh, said while millions were being wasted on the Mosquito Creek collapse, the 14-gate sluice gates which drain Woodland are still dysfunctional.

President of the Carli Bay Fishing Association, Imtiaz Khan, said they hope that NIDCO could unclog the blockages of the Mosquito Creek River which has devastated the fish nurseries.

He said the western coasts have 1,000 species of scaled fish and the Creek was an important spawning ground. He noted that huge boulders from the highway construction site have blocked the rivers, and potentially will negatively impact 38 fishing villages on the western coasts.

Meanwhile, Minister of Works Rohan Sinanan has said an investigation is ongoing into the collapse of the South Trunk Road at Mosquito Creek and once this is completed, he will make a public statement.

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