Administration Building

Guest Editorial. The following piece was recently received from a reader. It raises the interesting question, what has the most senior member of the opposition, Hubert Hughes, done to persuade our Chief Minister, Osborne Fleming, to agree to spend public money on renting Hubert’s building for government office space. Readers will know that the first thing Osborne did when he became Chief Minister in about the year 2000 was to move the Attorney-General’s Chambers from that building. It has laid closed up and unused ever since. The ostensible reason given at the time was to save public funds. Other offices rented out by government are in the old Caribbean Commercial Center and in the Social Security Building. There are probably others. Here is what he writes:

Time for Centralized Administration Building

I continue to be befuddled by the Government of Anguilla’s thinking and action as it relates to the continued rental of office space for government offices. What will it take to bring government to the realization that it cannot, must not, continue to give so much of the people’s money monthly to a select few landlords?

The practice is incomprehensible and is about to get worse with the impending transfer of several government offices into a building owned by opposition politician, Mr Hubert Hughes. It seems a case of one hand washing the other. It is a corrupt practice. Meanwhile, this building does NOT measure up to what is required of modern office space. It is very deficient.

It would be instructive to know just how much money government pays out monthly in office space rental. This must be an astronomical amount. Perhaps you, sir, can use your clout to find out.

The Government of Anguilla must as a matter of urgency move to erect a centralized Administration Building. This would allow for the monies presently being paid in rent to be used to service a loan. A centralized building would result in savings in utility costs, simplify important functions such as printing and IT management. It could serve to enhance punctuality and general human resource management. There are so many potential benefits that can be derived from this move that it is difficult to understand why this is not a priority project presently.

I understand that one of the government departments that will be moving soon to Hubert’s building is the Welfare Department, or Department of Social Development. That is where the Anguilla Legal Aid Clinic operates. Quarters are presently very cramped. Mrs Daphne Hodge kindly shares her office with the Clinic. It provides free legal advice on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays to persons who cannot afford the services of an attorney at law. I have the honour to serve in the Clinic at present. So, I have a conflict of interest. I want to assure all readers that I have had absolutely no role in engineering this fortuitous move!

Does any reader have the answer for out guest editor?