Stadium flag costs $2MBy WALTER ALIBEY Thursday, November 5 2009
AFTER weeks of denials, the Ministry of Sports and Youth Affairs yesterday admitted that the controversial flag at the Hasely Crawford Stadium in Port-of-Spain had indeed cost taxpayers approximately $2 million.
Sports Minister Gary Hunt has been under intense public criticism following reports the flag cost Government $2 million and he has been at pains since then to justify the expenditure without confirming the sum.
And Hunt left it to Kenneth Charles, chairman of the Sport Company of Trinidad and Tobago (SPORTT), to disclose and give details of the cost rather than do so himself during a press conference at the office of SPORTT, Henry Street, Port-of-Spain.
Charles, reading from a prepared text, told the media that Fire One Fire Works, the contractor, who has erected a similar flag at their premises in Macoya, had been given the tender to design and construct the flag because of their competitive price, experience with a similar installation as well as the support of their supplier in the United States.
Fire One Fire Works bettered bids by two other companies— Phabha Sports of the United States and Excellent Technologies of TT.
Charles then gave the following details:
* The flag, which is made from nylon and measures 60 x 36 feet, cost $18,112.15, VAT inclusive;
* Foundation and installation works— $940,000;
* Design and supply of monster flag pole— $932,400
* Three additional flags— $54, 336.
“This totals approximately two million TT dollars,” Charles said, before making a comparison of the cost of a similar sized national flag of Jordan, a Middle Eastern country.
“A similar flag of 410 feet recently installed in Jordan cost 7.56 million TT dollars,” Charles said.
Charles revealed the flag will have to be changed every four to six months because of weather conditions. It means that within this time-frame, Government will have to fork out another $18,000 every time to change the flag.
According to Charles, the contractor encountered swampy conditions where the flagpole was planted. On excavation, the contractor met water at a depth of six feet.
This work saw excavation being done at a depth of 20 x 20 x 15 feet to accommodate a foundation that needed 400 tonnes of reinforced concrete, two tonnes of steel reinforcement and blue stone granular backfill.
There were also additional costs for the use of cranes and other heavy equipment as well as the actual installation and commissioning. The flag stands at 150 feet with an additional 15 feet below the surface which enables it to withstand the power of the wind from the nearby ocean and the everyday passage of vehicles alongside the facility.
Charles also revealed the weight of the pole is 15,650 pounds and has a base diameter of 24 inches by six inches at the top. The monster flag is able to withstand a wind capacity of 130 miles per hour.
Charles’ announcement contradicted a media release issued by the Ministry of Sports earlier this week which claimed the flag cost just over $18,000. Although Charles was the one who made the statement, it was Hunt who faced a barrage of questions from reporters in which he once again defended the cost.
Hunt was adamant that the value of the “Legacy Flag” to the country will, by far, exceed the whopping $2 million sum.
He said the legacy flag was created as a reminder of the great achievements of sporting heroes Hasely Crawford, Ato Boldon, Brian Lara and Richard Thompson, among many others, who represented the red, white and black of Trinidad and Tobago.
He said the flag for many of the country’s patriotic citizens is not merely a pole and a piece of fabric, but rather a respected symbol of the nation.
“Every day the flag flies it is in itself damage control,” Hunt said, when asked if there was need for damage control in response to the public outcry.
Contacted yesterday, events co-ordinator of Fire One Fire Works Dalini George said she could only confirm that the cost given at yesterday’s press briefing is correct.
