Reporter queries Cabinet on MCM presentation

Tuesday,  September 20, 2005

At a weekly cabinet press briefing on Friday 15 September, Allan Markoff of the Caymanian Compass newspaper asked Cabinet Ministers for details relating to MCM’s company presentation to the Government.

Mr Markoff wanted to know whether other media organisations would be allowed to present to the Government.

“Will other media agencies be given the opportunity to bid?” Mr Markoff asked.

He also questioned whether MCM’s presentation of its company’s services to the Cabinet meant that GIS’ role in handling Government media publicity assignments was in the process of being changed and asked was GIS in the process of being privatised?

In response Leader of Government Business and Minister of District Administration, Planning, Agriculture & Housing, Honourable Kurt Tibbetts said that MCM had approached the Government to make its presentation. 

“Should you, or any other entity wish to make a presentation to the Government you are free to do so,” he said.

“I told MCM at a Cabinet meeting that any member of the private sector wishing to obtain Government contracts would have to do so through the tendering system.

“There are no plans to privatise the GIS. From time to time there will be the need for specific projects to be dealt with by entities other than GIS.”

Mr Markoff asked Mr Tibbetts about MCM approaching individual Government Departments for work when “we all know the way the process of contracts works.”

Mr Tibbetts said: “There are two tendering processes.” He explained that Government contracts that exceeded CI$100,000 were put out to tender. He added, however, that Department tendering was done for bids less than that.

Mr Tibbetts added that for anything (special contracts) under $20,000, Government Departments are free to go wherever they would choose to go to obtain the services. 

Mr Tibbetts said he saw MCM’s approach to the Government and the Departments as something any company would do to get business.

MCM is part of a publishing group not unlike many other media organisations on the Cayman Islands, which also publish journals, magazines and newspapers.

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