Dear Editor,
In recent weeks there have been television news reports that contaminated gasolene has been again negatively affecting some taxi drivers within the parish of St Thomas. According to the Minister of Energy Dr Andrew Wheatley, while speaking in the Lower House on October 25, the committee that was commissioned by former Energy Minister Phillip Paulwell to conduct a comprehensive enquiry into what specifically caused contaminated petrol to be distributed across the country was unable to find the source, thus making the report inconclusive and useless, to put it bluntly. It was a grand waste of taxpayers’ money.
Minister Wheatley articulated as well that $60 million worth of compensation claims for bad gas have been received by the Consumer Affairs Commission from motor vehicle owners throughout the country. This quantum makes it imperative that Minister Wheatley get to the bottom of the contaminated gas issue by further investigating the issue to identify the specific source, so as to prevent further contaminated gas being distributed across the country.
The source has not been found and once again ‘bad gas’ is turning up at some petrol stations in St Thomas. This should be cause for concern for the erudite energy minister and his ministry. The country could once again be hearing of motorists islandwide suffering the effects of bad petrol.
Also, I still believe Dr Wheatley should inform the country when motorists affected by bad gas last year will be compensated. While the Jamaica Labour Party was in Opposition its members were strident in the demand that the then People’s National Party Government take the steps necessary to compensate motorists who had received bad gas. It is only fair, then, that Wheatley proceeds to give compensation to the affected motorists and investigate the unfolding reports from motorists in St Thomas.
There need to be new regulations for the petrol industry. Distributing companies should install GPS technology on all trucks so that they are able to do minute-by-minute tracking and monitoring. They should allow for regular testing of all petrol products being sold at gas stations by the Bureau of Standards Jamaica inspectors, with fines for stations who flout the regulations.
Find the bad gas source or it will recur, Minister.
Robert Dalley, Esq
Montego Bay, St James
robertdalley@outlook.com
In recent weeks there have been television news reports that contaminated gasolene has been again negatively affecting some taxi drivers within the parish of St Thomas. According to the Minister of Energy Dr Andrew Wheatley, while speaking in the Lower House on October 25, the committee that was commissioned by former Energy Minister Phillip Paulwell to conduct a comprehensive enquiry into what specifically caused contaminated petrol to be distributed across the country was unable to find the source, thus making the report inconclusive and useless, to put it bluntly. It was a grand waste of taxpayers’ money.
Minister Wheatley articulated as well that $60 million worth of compensation claims for bad gas have been received by the Consumer Affairs Commission from motor vehicle owners throughout the country. This quantum makes it imperative that Minister Wheatley get to the bottom of the contaminated gas issue by further investigating the issue to identify the specific source, so as to prevent further contaminated gas being distributed across the country.
The source has not been found and once again ‘bad gas’ is turning up at some petrol stations in St Thomas. This should be cause for concern for the erudite energy minister and his ministry. The country could once again be hearing of motorists islandwide suffering the effects of bad petrol.
Also, I still believe Dr Wheatley should inform the country when motorists affected by bad gas last year will be compensated. While the Jamaica Labour Party was in Opposition its members were strident in the demand that the then People’s National Party Government take the steps necessary to compensate motorists who had received bad gas. It is only fair, then, that Wheatley proceeds to give compensation to the affected motorists and investigate the unfolding reports from motorists in St Thomas.
There need to be new regulations for the petrol industry. Distributing companies should install GPS technology on all trucks so that they are able to do minute-by-minute tracking and monitoring. They should allow for regular testing of all petrol products being sold at gas stations by the Bureau of Standards Jamaica inspectors, with fines for stations who flout the regulations.
Find the bad gas source or it will recur, Minister.
Robert Dalley, Esq
Montego Bay, St James
robertdalley@outlook.com