Dumas: PM has not lost confidence in me

Public Utilities Minister Rennie Dumas said yesterday he did not think the Prime Minister’s decision to write directly to the WASA Chairman asking for an explanation on the Grimes issue, suggested that his boss had lost confidence in him.

“Not at all. In fact what I thought the Prime Minister was doing, was clarifying whether what he was told, was true. I didn’t see it as a problem, ” he emphasised. Dumas said that people forget that the Prime Minister was also Minister of Finance and therefore had a responsibility as the Corporation Sole for all State agencies.  He added that all Board appointments are made by the Corporation Sole, which while the line minister has some responsibility in terms of policy, the financial responsibilities and issues remained with the Minister of Finance.

Dumas said that what the Prime Minister was told by the Board demonstrated that “my work was done” — that he, as line minister, had ensured that the instructions of the Government had been followed and all the requirements met. The Prime Minister’s letter had called on the Chairman of the WASA Board, Roland Baptiste, to ensure that Grimes was not receiving a salary of $50,000 in defiance of the instructions of the Cabinet. Since being told that this was in fact not so, the Prime Minister has himself come out in defence of higher pay levels for Executives in the State Sector.