Prime Minister Browne: High Fees from Private Garbage Operators to Be Eliminated with New Government-Owned Trucks
Prime Minister Gaston Browne has announced the government’s plan to eliminate high fees charged by private garbage operators, following the arrival of new government-owned trucks for waste collection.
Browne stated that these private contractors, often billing excessive rates while using old, unreliable equipment, will be largely replaced by the new fleet, with the National Solid Waste Authority now overseeing operations directly.
“For years, we’ve been dependent on private operators who charge exorbitant fees, yet continue to use trucks over 20 years old that keep breaking down,” Browne remarked.
He noted that the decision to purchase 10 new garbage trucks—seven of which are already on the island—was a necessary step to improve service reliability and reduce the costs associated with waste collection.
The Prime Minister added that under the new arrangement, the trucks will be managed by locals employed through the National Solid Waste Authority, putting an end to recurring breakdowns and unreliable service from private haulers.
He explained that while the government had paid private operators regularly, they often failed to reinvest in their equipment, instead opting to “patch up the same old trucks.”
Browne also highlighted issues of overcharging within the private system, where operators allegedly continued to bill the government even when trucks were out of operation.
“We’re now reviewing all these invoices to rationalize the system and bring transparency to waste management,” he said, noting that this restructuring aims to ensure more dependable service and address long-standing concerns with private contractors.
In addition to the garbage trucks, he confirmed that seven new fire trucks have also been purchased to enhance emergency services across the island.
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“Browne stated that these private contractors, OFTEN BILLING EXCESSIVE RATES while using old, unreliable equipment…………”.
Tarl. A so he a talk about his comrades? (LOL).
But dem and he na hab no shame.
He will continue to tell us about his comrades. THE TRUTH ALWAYS COMES OUT.
Whether what the case is, this is improvement and progress for everyone.
Thank God they have new trucks now and their own, at least people as a whole will benefit from this.
The private contractors for these projects charge way too much indeed for too long now and throe trucks always malfunctioning and you see them at the side of the roads broken down, they exploit the government in every way possible just like everyone else but they were caught so they mush face the music as they say.
Everybody overcharging for every little service these days, its not they cannot charge less, it just they want to exploit people and thats wrong, no wonder the Chinese and others coming in their nose hole and taking all dem monies, is good we have people among us who are considerate, thank God for them.
This doesn’t make sense to not paying the contractors their money 🙄 i am not a garbage contractor but the type of garbage these people picks up whatever money they charge pay them….the job that you as the prime minister do you want your just reward pay people their money…remember their health involves, their families and also to feed themselves and pay workers even the repairs of the equipment….I CAN’T STAND BACK AND SAY NOTHING WHEN I REALIZE ADVANTAGE…IT’S ADVANTAGE AND IT IS A SHAME….IF IT’S THAT MAY GOD ALLOW THE NEW EQUIPMENT YOU ARE BRINGING TO STAND STILL….YOUR JOB IMPORTANT THEIR JOB MOST IMPORTANT BECAUSE WE CAN’T LIVE WITH GARBAGE BUT WE CAN DO WITHOUT A PM AS LONG AS THE NATION TURN TO GOD HE WILL DELIVER US….STOP DOING IT YOU NO LONGER REALIZE HOW IT FEELS NOT TO HAVE IT…I KNOW AM A WITNESS TO SEE MONIES THAT BELONGS TO PUBLIC SERVANTS TAKEN AWAY AND WAS GIVEN SCRAPS ….WHICH WE COULD HAVE USE TO IMPROVE OUR LIVES….DO UNTO OTHERS YOU HAVE DONE UNTO YOU …IT’S OUR FAULT WE CHOOSE A KING OVER OUR GOD EACH ELECTION, GOD HAD WARN US IN THE BOOK OF SAMUEL WHAT WOULD HAVE HAPPENED WHEN WE CHOOSE A KING OVER GOD ,ALL WHAT THE GOVERNMENT GETTING IS FROM OUR DISOBEDIENCE TO GOD….REPENT EACH AND EVERYONE OF YOU READING THIS MY WRITING…GOD IS CALLING THE NATIONS BACK TO HIM, GOD FEARING PASTORS CALL A SOLEMN ASSEMBLY LIKE THE DAYS OF OLD …DROP ALL SINFUL TRAITS SUCH AS ..SELFISHNESS, BAD MINDEDNESS. WHORISH WAYS, UNKINDNESS, COMPROMISING BEHAVIOR. WHEN PEOPLE WRONG TELL THEM YOU ARE WRONG…GOD CAME TO SHOW THE WAY IF WE SO LOVE HIM FOLLOW HIM HAS HE WALK THE EARTH LIKE THIS IS THIS HIS IMAGE….WHEN THE DICIPLES CONTINUE SPREADING THE GOSPEL IT SAYS IN ACTS EVERY MAN BRINGS WHAT HE HAS AND LAID IT AT THE APOSTLES FEET ,IS THERE ANY REAL MAN OF GOD TO FOLLOW CHRIST DICIPLES AND THEIR ANY REAL CHRISTIANS FOR CHRIST TO FOLLOW HIS WAYS ….WHAT ARE WE PREPARING FOR REALLY THIS SELFISH EARTH THAT SATAN DAMAGE OR THE HEAVENLY SANTÙARY 🤔 ALL I HAVE TO SAY WAKE UP FOR WHAT NEXT AND BE OBEDIENT TO GOD’S COMMANDMENTS….
This doesn’t make sense to not paying the contractors their money 🙄 i am not a garbage contractor but the type of garbage these people picks up whatever money they charge pay them….the job that you as the prime minister do you want your just reward pay people their money…remember their health involves, their families and also to feed themselves and pay workers even the repairs of the equipment….I CAN’T STAND BACK AND SAY NOTHING WHEN I REALIZE ADVANTAGE…IT’S ADVANTAGE AND IT IS A SHAME….IF IT’S THAT MAY GOD ALLOW THE NEW EQUIPMENT YOU ARE BRINGING TO STAND STILL….YOUR JOB IMPORTANT THEIR JOB MOST IMPORTANT BECAUSE WE CAN’T LIVE WITH GARBAGE BUT WE CAN DO WITHOUT A PM AS LONG AS THE NATION TURN TO GOD HE WILL DELIVER US….STOP DOING IT YOU NO LONGER REALIZE HOW IT FEELS NOT TO HAVE IT…I KNOW AM A WITNESS TO SEE MONIES THAT BELONGS TO PUBLIC SERVANTS TAKEN AWAY AND WAS GIVEN SCRAPS ….WHICH WE COULD HAVE USE TO IMPROVE OUR LIVES….DO UNTO OTHERS YOU HAVE DO UNTO YOU …IT’S OUR FAULT WE CHOOSE A KING OVER OUR GOD EACH ELECTION, GOD HAD WARN US IN THE BOOK OF SAMUEL WHAT WOULD HAVE HAPPENED WHEN WE CHOOSE A KING OVER GOD ,ALL WHAT THE GOVERNMENT GETTING IS FROM OUR DISOBEDIENCE TO GOD….REPENT EACH AND EVERYONE OF YOU READING THIS MY WRITING…GOD IS CALLING THE NATIONS BACK TO HIM, GOD FEARING PASTORS CALL A SOLEMN ASSEMBLY LIKE THE DAYS OF OLD …DROP ALL SINFUL TRAITS SUCH AS ..SELFISHNESS, BAD MINDEDNESS. WHORISH WAYS, UNKINDNESS, COMPROMISING BEHAVIOR. WHEN PEOPLE WRONG TELL THEM YOU ARE WRONG…GOD CAME TO SHOW THE WAY IF WE SO LOVE HIM FOLLOW HIM HAS HE WALK THE EARTH LIKE THIS IS THIS HIS IMAGE….WHEN THE DICIPLES CONTINUE SPREADING THE GOSPEL IT SAYS IN ACTS EVERY MAN BRINGS WHAT HE HAS AND LAID IT AT THE APOSTLES FEET ,IS THERE ANY REAL MAN OF GOD TO FOLLOW CHRIST DICIPLES AND THEIR ANY REAL CHRISTIANS FOR CHRIST TO FOLLOW HIS WAYS ….WHAT ARE WE PREPARING FOR REALLY THIS SELFISH EARTH THAT SATAN DAMAGE OR THE HEAVENLY SANTÙARY 🤔 ALL I HAVE TO SAY WAKE UP FOR WHAT NEXT AND BE OBEDIENT TO GOD’S COMMANDMENTS….
Buying new trucks and making small contractors un-employed is not the solution. If the problem is with the rates and the dependebilaty of these trucks, than it would be better to sell those trucks to the small contractors at a price that is reasonable for them to afford. Copnditions should be set for them to have maintain their trucks to a certain standard. Government cannot be seen to be expanding their operations everytime in order to solve a problem. They may be creating another problem. I have saidf it before. Supervision is what is lacking when you have contractors performing duties for you. We have seen how Pringle was able to charge hundreds of thousands of dollars for picking up dead dogs. No one would supervise the work. But these invoices were paid without questions asked. Mr. PM deal with that problem and not by buying millions of dollars of euipment and then you have to hire more people and then they will abuse the use of these trucks and before you know it, you will need to have parts and when a truck is down the staff will have no work and so on and so on. A QS can easily workout the rate that a contractor should charge you. And when those rates are established each contract will have to abide by these rates. Let me give another example. There are some bus operators that provide transportagtion services to the hotels for their staff. The hotel have strict guidelines for these contractors. They inspect the busses from time to time and staff are encourage to report anything to management that is not contractual. It would not be advisable for the hotel to buy their own busses. Once again I urge you to reverse this decission. Sell the busses to the contractor. They can repay the government over a five year period and it can be partly financed by their fees. But do not let government own these trucks and take on more staff and a bigger burdon of running that operation.
Nobody chose no King over God. You are just vex your mouth not hanging where the soup dropping. Any government that gets into power will thief the people money one way or the other, its just a matter how much they are doing for the people and yes this government is trying but they can do much more.
What people like you needs to do is just pay your taxes and work with whatever government to make this place a better one and try hang your mouth for the soup too, you can’t expect to fight against the system and get anywhere, you have to work with whatever system is in place to get where you are going. Only way I would ditch the system is if the system is separating me from my Creator God, otherwise, my mouth will be by the soup my friend, and I will let my neighbors know where to hand their mouths too so everyone can benefit, be your brothers keeper.
People have choice to choose whomever they will serve, we cant control.
This is how bad supervision is. Contractors are hired to clean the road side curb. Cause they are filled with silt and weed is grown in them. This causes the water to get on the road and form puddles. Which we know is very unsightly and causes roads to deteriorate even faster. Now the contractor employees shovel this and place them on the road. And what I notice it takes days before a truck would come along to pick these up. Meanwhile the rain has fallen and the silt is back in the curb. Yet we will reward the contractor and pay his bill in full. Pure stupidity and waste of government monies. And no one is held accountable for that. All this because it is government. Ah nuh fuh you money. That is the attitude.
Less we forget, this is the government and sadly how it functions.
What we can do as a people is to clean along our own roads, clean in front our yards, the drains, cut the grass for Christ’s sake they are some nasty people living in ANU.
You mean you live in a place and wont even cut the grass, clean your drains, use a trash can.
So many unsightly places around and in the heart of Saint John’s too smh and they expect must go clean their kakahole for them, nasty people.
Grow up you lazy people and clean your own dyam surroundings.
I saw young man, well dressed walking in a yard which appeared to be his home, its like he literally had to part the bushes and grass to get inside…….now tell me people, somebody please tell me, what are we becoming as a people ?
A so nasty and lazy we are ?
After they make a killing paying themselves to not collect the garbage they talking about overcharging. Last time I went to the supermarket I was not allowed to set the price since i was the one offering the goods. How are the private operators supposedly able to do so?…and no supervision? Isn’t that what the govt employs people to do? What about Solid Waste, that their line always busy? Let me guess…the previous administration right?
This makes no sense. I was once a hacker for NSWMA, they are the ones who set the rates based on the various areas. To the best of my knowledge, no hauler ever set a price for NSWMA.
Mr. PM, check the information you have been given.
Antigua and Barbuda lacks fiscal discipline. We spend more than we earn and we fund that spending with more spending. Monitory policy goes hand in hand with fiscal policy. We need to restore confidence in our fiscal policy, something that has eluded us for a long time. We are creating a nightmare and a burden of debts that will be an albatross around the necks of future generations.
@Audley Phillip – It’s not spending, it’s called tiefing
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