By Omar Anderson, Staff ReporterA POTENTIAL embarrassment faces the Government arising out of last night's disclosure by Opposition spokesman on finance, Audley Shaw, that Christopher Honeywell, managing director of National Housing Development Corporation (NHDC), resigned last week because he refused to endorse the payment of an additional $35 million for a project which had already been paid for.
Citing this as the "latest episode in the scandal-ridden Ministry of Water and Housing", Mr. Shaw charged that Mr. Honeywell resigned his post after Water and Housing Minister Dr. Karl Blythe reportedly insisted that a senior employee who authorised the $35 million payment to a major preferred contractor, be reinstated after Mr. Honeywell fired him.
"He (Honeywell) is going to tell you he resigned because of personal reasons because he's a comrade. But he still must be congratulated," Mr. Shaw said. Meanwhile, The Gleaner learnt that the senior employee is the NHDC's chief technical director Warren Sibbles.
Additionally, Mr. Shaw described the contract as being illegal as he charged that the contract by-passed the scrutiny of the National Contracts Commission (NCC).
"It's one grand free-for-all in which the tax-payers are not receiving value for money," Mr. Shaw told The Gleaner, following a seminar on effective anti-corruption strategies at Terra Nova Hotel in Kingston, organised by the Jamaica Labour Party's (JLP) Generation 2000 (G2K).
But officials within the Water and Housing Ministry immediately dismissed Mr. Shaw's allegations about the reason behind Mr. Honeywell's resignation. Christopher Castriota, director of community relations in the Ministry, confirmed last night that Mr. Honeywell has resigned effective May, but that he was, however, unable to answer a number of Gleaner questions on the issue. He said Dr. Blythe will be hosting a press conference in Montego Bay on Friday "when all the details will come out."
"My response, until Friday, is that Mr. Honeywell has resigned but his resignation has nothing to do with ministerial interference or the Minister," he said, stating earlier that he had not seen Mr. Honeywell's resignation.
