PURCHASE OF FERRIES MUST BE PUT UNDER CAREFUL SCRUTINY

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A number of failed ferry projects costing the nation hundreds of millions should compel the nation to subject any new purchases to careful scrutiny. Foroyaa will give a comprehensive report on the key examples of the failures which could be attributed to lack of competitive bidding in purchasing such sovereign assets.

The country has all the possibilities of raising sovereign national wealth from its roads and bridges both from foreign currency and as a hub in the sub region. If the ferry services were linked to bridge management service, they could have built up to large companies or accumulate sovereign national wealth not only to buy more ferries, but also to build more bridges on self-reliant basis. Hence the government should go back to the drawing table to review the operation of the ferry service to avoid a whole country lacking a single ferry plying a major Trans Gambia link. This is unacceptable.