Dear Editor,
Minister Edghill claims there was “no report” declaring the MV Barima unfit. This is a pathetic deflection, not a defence.
Let me be clear: the absence of a single document saying “unfit” does not mean this 87-year-old vessel was safe. The tender documents circulated by Opposition Leader Mr. Azruddin Mohamed detail $124.5 million in emergency and urgent repairs—including 10,000 kilogrammes of deteriorated hull plating, propeller shafts, steering systems, turbochargers, and sea valves. These are not “routine maintenance.” They are the death certificates of a vessel that should have been scrapped decades ago.
Minister Edghill dismisses this as “normal” scheduled work. Is it normal for an 87-year-old ferry to require 10 tonnes of hull replacement just two years after its last dry dock?
He attempts to equate the Barima’s needs with the Malali and Makouria. This is an insult to our intelligence. Those vessels are not 87 years old. They are much larger ships—and any fool knows a bigger hull requires more steel. To compare them is either gross incompetence or deliberate deception. Which is it, Minister?
The MV Barima met none of the internationally recognized SOLAS 90 standards for passenger vessel safety.
SOLAS 90 was written in blood after the Herald of Free Enterprise disaster—specifically to address the vulnerability of ferries to capsizing after water enters the open deck. Under SOLAS 90, a passenger vessel must survive damage to two watertight compartments in seas with waves up to 1.25 metres high. It must handle significant wave heights of 1.5 metres. The Barima met none of these standards. None.
This vessel should have undergone at least two inspections every 12 months, with at least one being unscheduled and in-service—including medical testing of the crew. It never happened.
Instead, we had a rum-imbibing, cannabis-smoking crew running a buccaneer operation while scores of lives were at stake. The captain and first engineer tested positive for cannabis. The cargo exceeded certified limits. The passenger manifest was a work of fiction. Survivors reported water entering the vessel and engine problems before departure.
Minister Edghill, you promised the “full force of the law” would apply to those responsible. Why does that not include you?
You were the Minister responsible. You oversaw this disaster. You approved or failed to oversee every systemic failure that led to this tragedy. If the Barima was safe, why did it sink? If it was maintained, why did survivors report water ingress? If you have nothing to hide—release the complete maintenance records. Release the results of the last ultrasonic hull thickness testing. Allow an independent Commissioner of Inquiry with international regional participants from Trinidad and Tobago to ensure integrity.
The evidence to date confirms the MV Barima was not seaworthy and should never have been on the open sea.
The families of the deceased deserve transparency, not spin. They deserve accountability, not cunning technicalities. And they deserve to know why this government refuses international assistance from Trinidad and Tobago and France—even as we now search for dead bodies.
Minister Edghill may not want to admit the truth. But the facts are undeniable. We call on Minister Edghill to resign immediately. Duty demands it.