-home for affected children floated
President Irfaan Ali yesterday declined to say whether the management team suspended after the MV Barima disaster remains off the job or whether any action would be taken against ministers, saying that he would await the findings of the independent Commission of Inquiry (COI).
Questioned at a press conference about the status of the team responsible for the loading, dispatch and overall management of the vessel, Ali did not provide an answer.
Minister of Public Works Juan Edghill had announced the suspension of the team one day after the disaster.
Ali was also asked about public calls for Edghill and Minister of Public Utilities and Aviation Deodat Indar to be suspended or removed from office to facilitate a transparent and impartial investigation.
He said an independent COI had been established to investigate the circumstances surrounding the tragedy and that he did not intend to speculate or prejudice its work.
“The COI, having been established, will conduct its work, make its determination, its recommendation, and then we’ll take it from there,” the President said.
He added that any action he took would be based on the commission’s recommendations.
Ali told the journalist that the questions had not acknowledged the establishment of the inquiry and asked that there be respect for its work.
“I am not going to add to speculation or be part of speculation,” he said.
The President maintained that the independence of the inquiry was important to ensuring a transparent examination of the disaster.
He said that, pending the COI’s completion, the government would take only those steps considered essential, including addressing immediate vessel-safety deficiencies.
An independent team has been assigned to inspect government vessels, identify gaps and have deficiencies corrected, he said.
He also did not say whether the COI’s terms of reference include examining ministerial responsibility, the conduct of the vessel’s management or the adequacy of regulatory oversight.
According to the President, the commissioners have begun settling their procedures and preparing a work plan. He said the commission’s substantive work on the ground was expected to begin in early September.
Salvage bids
Ali also disclosed that the government had received expressions of interest from companies seeking to salvage the MV Barima.
He said the submission period closed on Friday and the interested companies were now being shortlisted by the responsible agency. Those meeting the stated criteria would then be invited to submit prices for the salvage operation.
The President said he believed ten or more expressions of interest had been received but cautioned that he did not have the exact figure.
“I think it’s ten or more. Don’t hold me to that,” he said.
Ali could not say how many submissions came from local companies. He said all proposals would be assessed against the established criteria before the qualified firms were invited to submit financial offers.
He did not identify the agency conducting the process, disclose the criteria or provide a timetable for selecting a contractor and recovering the vessel.
Long-term assistance
Meantime, the President said the government’s immediate priority remained supporting the families affected by the disaster, including those who lost relatives, those whose family members remain missing and the families of persons who worked aboard the vessel.
He said the ministries of Health and Human Services were maintaining contact with affected households, particularly where children, women and elderly parents required assistance.
Ali said the government had established the HEART Initiative as a long-term, multi-stakeholder mechanism to address the immediate, medium- and long-term needs of the families.
The initiative would provide legal assistance with documentation and classification issues, along with mental-health care, medical attention, counselling, spiritual support and assistance for affected children, he said.
The possibility of establishing a special home for children affected by the disaster was also being considered.
Ali said the programme would examine social, emotional, medical and financial needs rather than confining assistance to the immediate aftermath of the tragedy.
He added that outreach visits were planned for every affected region and that regional networks and support hubs were being developed.
The President said he had also been attempting to contact affected families daily.
He did not provide figures on the assistance distributed so far, the programme’s budget or the number of families currently receiving support.
The 87-year-old, state-operated MV Barima capsized on July 18, 2026, while travelling from Georgetown to Port Kaituma after issuing a distress call off the Pomeroon coast. Some 73 people died, 76 survived and approximately 30 remained unaccounted for.
Survivors alleged that the vessel was overloaded with passengers and cargo, while the official manifest was found to be inaccurate. Captain Kevin Price, Chief Mate Rondell Dwayne Roberts and Goods Superintendent Delon Granderson—employees of the Transport and Harbours Department—were subsequently remanded after each was charged with 73 counts of murder.
The charges prompted protests and accusations that the workers were being made scapegoats for wider institutional failures. Opposition parties and other groups have called for the resignations of Edghill and Indar to facilitate an impartial investigation. The five-member COI was subsequently established to determine the cause of the sinking, identify negligence or institutional failures and establish accountability.
Discussion