GWI CEO defends hiring two friends
By Fareeza Haniff
Dr Richard Van West Charles.
Newly appointed Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Guyana Water Inc (GWI), Dr Richard Van West Charles is being criticized for hiring two persons without advertising the positions.
iNews has been able to confirm that soon after he was appointed CEO of the government entity in October, Dr Van West Charles hired Lance Mars as a Consultant within the Bill Department and Lear Goring as the Manager of the Debt Recovery Unit.
Reports indicate that both men are close friends of the CEO. When iNews contacted the Public Relations Department of GWI, it was confirmed that none of these positions were advertised.
When contacted for a comment on the matter on Monday, December 07, the CEO told iNews that those persons who are concerned about his decision to hire the two men should write the Board of GWI.
He confirmed that the posts were not advertised, pointing out that he does not need to do so.
“Well one is a consultant; you don’t need to advertise for consultant position,” Dr Van West Charles told iNews.
When asked if he should have advertised the managerial position, the CEO said, “Well I didn’t advertise for this position because there were a number of other positions that I wanted to look at specifically and I wanted to ensure that I had somebody I can depend on.”
He further noted that he needed someone who is competent enough to deal with the debt at the company. When questioned, the CEO made it clear that he did not hire Mr Goring because he is a friend.
“He had applied to GWI and I know him…but I know many people in the organization so it’s an area that I have responsibility for and…we have shown results already; in the month and a half, we have collected over $50M already in terms of the level of indebtness, so I am satisfied with his performance,” Dr Van West Charles noted.