Still No Chief Transport Officer at Department of Transport

Rodwell Ferguson

As we’ve reported, Diane Vasquez is no longer the Chief Transport Officer at the Department of Transport and Peter Williams is now acting in that position. Vasquez’s contract with government had expired and we are told that she refused the renegotiated offer made to her. And so, the ministry is now looking for a replacement. Minister of Transport Rodwell Ferguson gave the media an update earlier today, but also responded to having lost several persons in his ministry.

Rodwell Ferguson, Minister of Transport

“The chief transport officer, Miss Diane Vasquez, term expired after two years and normally after your term expires, you negotiate your contract with the Ministry of Finance. Apparently, there was talking and apparently she neva satisfied with what was offered to her. And so, she says she will not sign the contract because then she wanted X amount as the chief transport officer. That is out of my realm as the Minister of Transport. I have no negotiation with her, but it was the Ministry of Finance. So, so far, there have been no new appointment and Mister Peter Williams is acting and then I am asking the public service to advertise in the public service department to see who best meet that criteria. I don’t know if there is a failure, but when I do have a responsibility, I do it to the best of my ability. And if we cannot get what we want to accomplish, then we have to figure out what is the way forward. With the C.E.O., Mister Marconi Leal, we were working together for two and a half years and something was not done based on my request or what we want to accomplish and so I had to figure out what to do as the minister responsible cause I don’t want my ministry to fail. And so I had to make a decision and talk to the prime minister and say what is going to be the next course of action. So right now we have a brand new C.E.O. Miss Adele Catzim-Sanchez and we have a very good working relationship.”