Senator pleads for OSHA — Let dole replace URP

Ali was addressing the Senate Wednesday which was debating the Supplementation and Variation of Appropriation Bill 2005.

He told of receiving a phone call from the father of Shivam Harrylal, who was killed in an explosion at Industrial Gases Limited (IGL).

"He said how thankful he was I had raised this matter in the public domain because since his son had died nobody had spoken to him. That is not right."

Ali said he told Harrylal that he would talk to him hopefully next month if the report of the investigation into the accident was ready.

"I told him that what I have done is to try to make sure that this kind of incident is not forgotten and that it is my responsibility in this House being appointed by the President with experience in this field, to bring it to this House."

Ali said he has also filed another question on the Senate order paper with respect to Dale Paul who died last month on the International Steel Group (ISG) plant. "I do this because we forget about these people who get killed, and we forget why some of us are so passionate about OSHA. I plead to the minister to get this system in place."

Ali acknowledged that the Government may need more resources to implement OSHA. He recalled Montano last week saying two "ISO One" officers of his ministry were a part of the investigation into the accidental death of Shivam Harrylal.

"I didn’t realise when the minister gave his reply to me that the ISO Ones were the entry-grade of inspectors. They can’t really sit down there with the people from IGL and Air Liquid — you need higher people than that to sit down and negotiate and investigate these accidents."

Ali said the Factory Inspectorate of the Ministry of Labour needs to be improved. He said he hoped trade union leaders would champion OSHA at the upcoming marches on Labour Day.

Ali said he would be happy to support any measure brought to increase the resources to implement OSHA.

Otherwise he cautioned the Government over its spending saying that unspent money does not spoil. Ali noted that the Government was seeking to add to the URP allocations an extra $161 million, comprised of $118 million for administration and $42 million for goods and services.

"I would like to suggest that we could save money by going on a system of dole. So you don’t have to spend money on the materials which get wasted. That’s where the inefficiency in URP is. I see it all the time, the mounds of silt which get ‘recycled’ back into the drains when the rains come down."