By Amin Kef Sesay
One of the leading water bottling companies in the country, the Gulf Mineral Water and Beverage Company, situated at 5 Smart Farm, Off Wilkinson Road in Freetown is far from operating according to appreciable and acceptable standards. Even though the company is making huge profits from the sale of the products that it manufactures, which are sold mainly to hotels, supermarkets, entertainment complexes, among other market outlets with a sizable quantity exported to neighboring countries, yet it is openly conspicuously apparent that it is not living up to expectation by giving back to society.
Lamentably, the company stands guilty of not effectively honoring its Corporate Social Responsibility within its area of operations. As a matter of fact, it was the expectation of many residents living within the locality that Management would, from time to time, facilitate the maintenance of the road that leads to where the company is located but that is far from taking place.
Indeed, the road is really in a deplorable state and is a complete eyesore. Management of the company has never expressed the willingness or interest to ensure that the repairing of the road takes place and worst still is that the company’s fleets of vehicles that are used to supply the products that it produces are just packed haphazardly thereby making it extremely difficult for residents owning vehicles to conveniently have places for safely packing. To add insult to injury the water that is used in the production line is being bought from the Guma Valley Water Company whose vehicles also contribute to the worsening of the condition of the road
What is indeed indisputably is the fact that the road is, on a daily basis, damaged by the company’s vehicles and as best practice demands it must be the responsibility of Management of the company to ensure that regular maintenance work is undertaken but regrettably that is not the situation and every day the problem keeps escalating to the discomfort and annoyance of many.
Through an in-depth investigation conducted by this medium it was discovered that the company does not have an Electronic Cash Register (ERC) to track down the sales of its products. In other words, there is no proper financial transparency in place and such should be checkmated because it is only when a well placed mechanism is put in place that the National Revenue Authority (NRA) would be in a better position to determine the amounts the company should be paying as taxes to the Government.
What this medium also learnt is that Management of the company has made it a deliberate policy to employ casual workers who are paid below the minimum wage and not subjected to other employment benefits.
It is high time that the Government should prevail on the Management as soon as possible by making it obligatory for it to undertake proper maintenance of the road in order to bring it up to an appreciable standard and that must be done as soon as possible otherwise the situation would continue to deteriorate. Besides, Management must be told to install an Electronic Cash Register in order to track down the sales that it conducts at the factory. The Ministry of Labour and Social Security should also ensure that the workers of the company are treated fairly.
For now as the situation stands the Gulf Mineral Water and Beverage Company is not operating according to how a good manufacturing company of that nature should be doing and residents within the community are not in any way benefitting in any shape or form. The timely intervention of the Government and other stakeholders is highly significant at this material in order to prevent residents from continuing to suffer the inconvenience that the dilapidated road continues to pose.
