Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Gail Teixeira on Tuesday, clarified that a Project Manager who was hired by the previous Coalition Government is being paid a whopping $US6800 per month and that sum is being taken from the budget of the Office of the President.
Teixeira was at the time responding to claims made by Opposition Leader Joseph Harmon that the Project Manager, who Harmon himself identified as Dr Marlon Bristol, was employed at “half the salary” the previous person who occupied that position got prior to 2015.
The information regarding the salary and emoluments of the Project Manager came to light last evening during the consideration of the estimates and expenditures for the Office of the President. Teixeira did not identify the Project Manager by name.
However, in addition to naming the individual, Harmon talked up the competence and achievements of Mr Bristol whom he said was hired to work on the APNU/AFC’s Green State Development Strategy and other environmental issues.
Teixeira, during a brief interview with DPI asserted that while she would not like to get into a long discussion as to what he (Harmon) said, “he jumped the gun and he is on a wrong footing.”
“Any record of the Parliamentary debate would show that I didn’t call anybody’s name in terms of contracted workers,” the Minister expressed.
She further clarified that contrary to what is being said by the Opposition Leader, while the project is donor funded, it does not cover the salary of the Project Manager.
“The source of funding does not cover the salary of the person, who I spoke of, the US$6800 is paid directly from the Office of the President budget; that’s taxpayers money,” Teixeira highlighted.
