Statement by Vance Campbell, Shadow Minister of Public Works & Infrastructure:
Parents arrived at Dame Marjorie Bean Hope Academy last week only to discover the school was closed because of drainage and health concerns.
For families with children who have complex needs, this is more than an inconvenience. It disrupts their lives and raises serious questions about the management of our public facilities.
And this is not an isolated incident.
At Elliot Primary School, air-conditioning units were installed only for Government to discover there wasn’t enough electrical capacity to operate them. How does that happen without anyone checking first?
At the start of the school year, 47 health-and-safety priority items remained outstanding across our public schools.
Now the National Sports Centre’s Aquatics Centre has been closed for nine days because of mechanical and water-quality problems.
Different facilities. Different problems. The same lack of planning and accountability.
How many complaints were made before these problems became emergencies? Were they ignored? Who is responsible for ensuring maintenance gets done?
Why does Government seem to wait until facilities become unusable before taking action?
These are not luxuries. They are schools and sporting facilities that our children, families and communities depend on.
The Government must explain what went wrong at Hope Academy, publish the outstanding maintenance issues across our schools and provide clear timelines for repairs.
Maintenance is not a surprise expense. It is a basic responsibility of Government.
Bermudians deserve a Government that plans ahead, responds to concerns and fixes problems before families are left dealing with the consequences.
