Like many Barbadians across the island, I read with relief the news that at least 50 buses were repaired and added to the transportation fleet.
I distinctly remember the days of waiting sometimes several hours for bus service and I could well imagine with only 42 operational buses, that wait time would have increased for many, leading to frustration for commuters and minimized productivity for business due to lateness from employees and a myriad of other economic and social issues.
There were; however, two areas of interest in this article that caught my attention and lead to several questions:
”Garages that work for the Board have been put on notice by management that their output and turnover in the repair of units must be improved, especially for minor defects.”
It is good that a target has been established for the output and turnover of repairs. However, I do imagine that there may be several reasons for the delay in bus repairs:
“A plan has been agreed on with Simpson Motors, the exclusive authorised provider of Mercedes Benz parts which many of the buses use, to source parts to ensure the objectives will be met.”
There have been countless calls for a Contractor General and I will not reiterate the reasons why this call is critical; however, this is a situation where the Contractor General would be very useful. As creatures of habit even in our personal lives, we tend to use only one supplier without investigating alternative options.
One particular store or brand has become our sole source for furniture, electronics, food, etc., without recognition that there may be better options out there for our growing needs. However, this approach can potentially lead to complacency.
A few questions then that come to mind include:
The issues related to the Transport Board are not unique. Many of these queries can apply to various bodies within government.
In light of the recent financial issues that came to the fore, the need for tighter financial and operational controls becomes ever pressing, particularly those raised by the Auditor General, to prevent or minimise instances of wastage in these hard economic times.
*Krystle Howell, CPA, CIA, COSO, ALMI, ACS, aka Mavis, is an Internal Auditor by profession, avid artist and a lover of dance.
