BASSETERRE, St. Kitts, December 23, 2020 (Press Unit in the Office of the Prime Minister) – The Government of the Republic of China (Taiwan) has again come to the support of the Government and people of St. Kitts and Nevis. On this occasion, Taiwan, through its Embassy here in Basseterre, has provided financial support towards the construction of the Lodge/Ottley’s Community Center.
Ata brief handing over ceremony held today (Wednesday, December 23), Resident Ambassador of the Republic of China (Taiwan) to the Federation, His Excellency Tom Lee, said as a longstanding ally, his Government stands ready to assist the Federation in any way possible.
AmbassadorLee stated that there is no doubt that the Lodge/Ottley’s Community Center “is a very important project because it can be used not only as a center for people to get together but also as a hurricane shelter to protect people’s lives and we are very happy to hear that the project is near completion.”
FinancialSecretary Mrs. Hilary Hazel used the occasion of the handing over ceremony to express profound gratitude to the Government and people of the Republic of China (Taiwan) for their continued support in the overall development of St. Kitts and Nevis.
Shesaid, “Taiwan has been known to be a true and solid partner, as we have in the past and currently experienced your government’s support for our build out of our social infrastructure – critical infrastructure that is required for us to achieve our goals of improving the lives of all Kittitians and Nevisians and for that we are eternally grateful.”
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Dr. the Honourable Timothy Harris hailed the excellent work of contractor Dwight Berry and his team for their work on the multipurpose center that is now at an advanced stage in its construction.
“I think it’s one of the better executed projects I’ve seen in a long while in Government, in that notwithstanding the COVID-19 challenges, the contractor managed to execute in a way that all of us are satisfied with. There were occasions where I visited and I was in awe of how far they had gotten. So it’s a tribute to local talent because in fact he is a contractor known in the community. Certainly, the manner in which Mr. Dwight Berry has executed this one is a good reflection and he has now made it big in my own books,” said Prime Minister Harris, who is also the Parliamentary Representative for the area.
Directorof Public Works, Mr. Cromwell Williams, who was also present at the handing over ceremony, said the contractor is now at the stage of installing the necessary electrical fittings which is expected to be completed within the next week or two. After the electrical work, the contractor will do his final clean up before the keys to the facility are handed over.
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