MINISTER PICKERSGILL PRESENTS LUXURY BUS TO REGGAE BOYZ

Minister Robert Pickersgill on Friday, September 3, made a presentation of a 53 seater luxury bus to the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) for which President Mr. Crenston Boxhill accepted on behalf of the Federation.

The bus which came through the Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC) is a Volvo luxury bus costing J$8.5M and it is expected to greatly assist the transportation needs of the 'Boyz' as they continue their 'Journey to Germany' campaign. The bus is a very modern one and boasts among other things, a television, DVD, carpet and Air Conditioning.

Speaking at the handing over ceremony, Minister Pickersgill said ' I believe we can all agree that the performances of our national soccer team, the Reggae Boyz have stimulated great interest and great joy in Jamaica and the Caribbean…our team is busy trying to remove the obstacles on the road to Germany, the country that will host the 2006 World Cup…in this regard we are happy to provide a mode of transport that will assist the team members along that road.'

As part of the loan agreement, the following provisions will be in place:

1. The bus will be on loan for two years in the first instance.
2. The Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica (PCJ) will provide fuel for the bus.
3. The JUTC will provide a driver.
4. The JR Group headed by Mr. Rennie Wellington, the exclusive dealer for Volvo buses in Jamaica will be responsible for the maintenance of the bus.

Minister Pickersgill also used the opportunity to thank all the various individuals and entities involved in sponsoring and supporting the national soccer programme seeing it as 'another tangible example of public/private sector collaboration in the interest of national development.'

And for his part, President of the JFF, Mr. Crenston Boxhill thanked the Ministry of Transport and Works for the gift of the bus. He said that he was quite impressed with the bus itself and observed that it will only enhance the team's preparation for rest of the World Cup journey.

A number of officials from both the Ministry and the JFF, including Permanent Secretary, Alwin Hales, Minister of State, Fenton Ferguson, Technical Director of the JFF, Mr. Carl Brown, Head Coach, Mr. Sebastioa Lazaroni, along with some of the Reggae Boyz were on hand to witness the presentation.