 Thank you Mr. Speaker. Good morning colleagues. Mr. Speaker, before I address the substantive motion in front of us, I just want to comment on two matters. One has to deal with your pronouncements at our last sitting, where you touted the achievements of parliament. But still this nagging issue, Mr. Speaker, where copies of hindsight cannot be made available and we have to rely on recordings. And you can well imagine the hustle it is to go through a recording to try to identify something that was said. So I am hoping that we can see some significant improvement in that aspect of it. But I commend you on the... If I can just respond right away. We have written to the office of the prime minister for the establishment of a separate handset. What do you call the transcribing unit? And I think we are getting some positive response. So we will be able to update the handsets. But if you need a specific report, we can get a transcribe for you. Mr. Speaker, because I wanted to remind the honorable prime minister on a matter that when we had first brought the draft of the health and security levy for general observation and discussion, one of the recommendations that I brought forward to him was the whole issue of recognizing the sanitary napkins, how important it was to include it as one of the exempt items. And I was very happy that he did it, Mr. Speaker. And you know, sometimes you know, I don't like blowing my own, but just give me my kudos when they come. Thank you. Mr. Speaker, the other thing the prime minister said in his opening remarks, and he continually said it, but there is a misleading item to it, a misleading part of it, where he continues to say that he provides resources to the members opposite. In fact, in one news item I read that he said I provide the necessary resources to the members opposite. And while it is true, Mr. Speaker, and my colleague from then Rinoff continuously reminds me that he served for six years and he did not get a cent. He continues to remind me I need to be grateful, you know, and he continuously reminds me whenever I said to him, but the prime minister is misleading when he gives the impression because the people in my community believe that I am receiving similar resources like the members of cabinet. And I get a lot of pressure because they say that I get work and I send it back. So I want to set the record straight, you know, that while I'm appreciative of what comes, Mr. Speaker, but it's misleading to give the general impression that we are getting the necessary resources to do work in our community. Mr. Speaker, I move to the substantive discussion. Yes, I get $100,000 a quarter. Mr. Speaker, there's one thing that we agree on on both sides of the house. There's one thing I agree on. We agree on on both sides of the house, Mr. Speaker, and that is water is life. We agree that water is life. And I believe Wasco has been an unfair target by many solutions. And I also believe, Mr. Speaker, that Wasco has suffered even significant greater challenges since Hurricane Thomas. And no did a thing that we need to recognize, Mr. Speaker. But my colleague to my direct left, Mr. Speaker, I must say, you know, he looks very striking in his colors today, you know, colors of he tried to represent colors of Wasco, but he needs a deeper blue. But and we get along quite well, Mr. Speaker, because, you know, we have various similarities in our socializing, Mr. Speaker. But Mr. Speaker, he said something, and I just I just want for the record, because when the when the prime minister referred to the the past years, what a supply project in last season, something I remembered, a similar discussion when when we were in office. Because I remember when the past years project was mentioned, there was a discussion about feral pigs, kosher mawan, and the damage that it does to the various catchment areas. And I remember because I asked permission then, if I could go and hunt some of these kosher mawan. So I remember and I remember, Mr. Speaker, very distinctly. And that's why I had to get it. A press release, that was released on Wednesday, November 18, 2020, to the past years water upgrade. And Mr. Speaker, if you have permission, I will just residents of past years will have their waterways address with the soon to be commissioned water project in the community. Less than one year ago on November 25, 2019, to be exact, officials from Wasco and the San Lucia Social Development Fund, SSDAF held a contract signing ceremony for the past years, Meekood water supply improvement project. The scope of the project included a replacement of a 50,000 gallon water tank with 100,000 gallon tank and repairs to the water tank at Lombard as well as some drainage work. The project was promised by the parliamentary rep for Meekood North Honourable Dr. Gail Rigobot. To date, works have been completed on the Lombard tank. The old one was demolished and a new 100,000 gallon tank erected and the necessary connections are now in place. Repairs on the existing 50,000 gallon tank included a replacement of faulty sheets and thorough cleaning of the tank. The resurfacing of the access to the Lombard tank site was also part of the project and has since been completed with only the drainage works now outstanding. Mr. Speaker, I speak to that because, you know, while the member indicated that some work had started, it was very flitting in his comment, you know. And you know, I'm always intrigued when we speak about Wasco and the providing water because and the reason I'm intrigued, Mr. Speaker, because, you know, we in 2023 and you would think that this is one of the basic things that, you know, must be provided and must be, you know, identified by various governments to ensure that, you know, our population does not have that. Because, Mr. Speaker, if anything, water is one of the things that touch the very lives, the souls of every single resident. And maybe one day, maybe one day, we will identify, and I'm not just talking about, you know, anybody that we seem to have really, and I've spoken about it on several occasions to speak the amount of poverty in our country, but maybe one day we'll be able to identify the people who truly cannot pay water and Wasco and provide maybe a limit. And, you know, that could be one of the subsidies that government can, you know, provide to some of these very, very vulnerable families, Mr. Speaker. Because, you know, it is, it is, it is downright shame, crying shame that in 2023, there are people who without running water as a result of not being able to pay a Wasco bill. And I speak to the very poor and vulnerable people who really have no means, you know, Mr. Speaker. So I'm hoping that that day will come, Mr. Speaker. But Mr. Speaker, I spoke to some of the challenges that Wasco has. And just before the meeting office, Mr. Speaker, we wrote to BNTF under the 10th program, Mr. Speaker, to identify a 100,000 gallon tank for Victoria Choiselle. And the grant was approved. But to date, you know, we're still without that tank. I have noticed that the platform has been erected. And I'm hoping that that tank will be in place before the next dry season, Mr. Speaker. Because that tank is supposed to benefit at least 13 communities in the constituency of Choiselle, Salty Bus. And now that I've mentioned Salty Bus, Mr. Speaker, I took personal responsibility to visit the catchment in the Salty Bus area and recognize that it's a catchment that is no longer, it has served its time, Mr. Speaker. And I felt that we need to identify another place where we could harvest that water to provide to the people of Salty Bus. And I took it on my own. I invited staff of Wasco, along with members of the community, and we trekked upriver, Mr. Speaker, to a place called Wavin Mabet. I'm sure the fittest of you all here may not be able to reach that area, Mr. Speaker. It was a very difficult trek. But we recognized at the time we did that, Mr. Speaker, it was in the dry season. And we identified an area, Mr. Speaker, where you would think that we were in the rainy season. And Wasco was there. They were asked to look at the feasibility. And I'm really hoping that government could provide the necessary resources, the necessary grants to really improve on the Salty Bus water supply, Mr. Speaker, because for an area that lies within the water belt in the forest area, it's a crime shame that we cannot get the necessary water supply as required. In fact, if we were able to tap in that new area, Mr. Speaker, I can assure you that that water may serve as far as as library because of what was indicated by the engineers and the other Wasco personnel that accompanied us. Mr. Speaker, I also want to speak because sometimes, you know, we speak to some of the things that are done when various governments are in office, but we seem to breeze over very important things that have been accomplished. The last administration spent over four point five million dollars in replacing pipes along the Grosily Highway at the same time that we had started the construction of the section in Rodney Bay there, Mr. Speaker. And that also delayed the roadworks. And I can tell you, Mr. Speaker, we spent about about two point five million dollars in purchasing pipes and about the contract to lay down these pipes was in the region of about two million dollars, Mr. Speaker. And I think that's a project that we have to look at island wide because you look, Mr. Speaker, in fact, I experienced in Shorzel where Wasco pipes continuously burst in the very same area time and time again. They dig up the road, they fix it within a week. That same area, Mr. Speaker, has compromised. I'm not sure why I cannot, you know, I'm speak to it. I don't work at Wasco. But I think Wasco needs to come out and comprehensively speak about some of these challenges that they have. I know the former minister responsible for Wasco had discussions with the government of Cuba, I think it was, where we identified a particular material that was being used to construct water pipes, the four inch pipes. And I think there was supposed to have been some arrangement to bring down some of these pipes so that it could replace our overall pipe network. And I'm hoping that the government will continue to pursue that avenue because the rusty pipes that we have supplying us with water, you know, their time has long passed. So, Mr. Speaker, there's no doubt that, you know, a project like that is welcomed by both sides, welcomed by the entire population of St. Lucia. And, you know, I want to say we need more of these type of projects. Sometimes I wonder and I speak to the mentality of both sides in terms of our supporters, whether, you know, some of these projects are not sexy enough to guarantee, you know, a seat in the next elections and whether people want a little, you know the saying, give them a fish or teach them to fish, whether that is more of a priority in terms of how voters look at things, Mr. Speaker. But, you know, things like that, Mr. Speaker, are very important, especially in the age that we live in. And I'm looking forward to more things that will strike at the very heart of our households, particularly the vulnerable. That being said, Mr. Speaker, I thank you.