Found at: http://www.anguillaguide.com/article/articleprint/4223/-1/140/
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Fritz Smith Proud Of National Service
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Fritz Smith, Director of Construction, Housing and Estates Facilities Management in the Ministry of Infrastructure, Communications, Utilities, Housing, Agriculture and Fisheries for a number of years, says he is proud of the 24 years of national service he gave to the Government and people of Anguilla as a public servant and that he leaves the civil service with a clear conscience.
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Mr. Fritz Smith
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The amiable and outgoing Mr. Smith made the comment on Tuesday, January 2, his last working day in the public service prior to his departure on Wednesday. He has assumed the private sector post of a Project Management Adviser at the golf course project with Flag Luxury Properties, further information on which will be given later. He is also planning to establish a consulting firm.
“I suppose there comes a point in life when you start to see things differently and you seek to maximise on opportunities out there that you can benefit from in the longer run,” said the nephew of Chief Minister Osbourne Fleming.
Smith’s first job in the public service was in 1982 when he served as a primary school teacher for several years. He later taught on two occasions at the Albena Lake-Hodge Comprehensive School and after that entered the Ministry of Infrastructure. He has had a number of overseas study breaks as he sought to better qualify himself in the public service.
“I must say thanks to the Government and people of Anguilla for paying for all of my training,” said Smith. He holds a Hons Diploma in Quantity Surveying from the former College of Arts, Science and Technology in Jamaica; a Bachelor of Science degree in Construction Management from the University of the West of England (in Bristol) and a Master of Science degree in Project Management from Sheffield Hallam University. He is a Member of the Association of Building Engineers in the United Kingdom.
From a public viewpoint, Mr. Smith was seen as a prospective Permanent Secretary, but choosing his words carefully, he commented: “When you work in the public service, you will know that any particular vacancy when created is there for any other civil servant and the choice of who fills what post is up to the Public Service Commission and the Governor’s Office.”
Is the talented and hard-working Fritz harbouring any hard feelings?
“None, whatsoever,” he honestly replied. “I am satisfied that I have served the public of Anguilla to the best of my ability. I leave with a clear conscience. I believe I have given back more that what I have taken out and based on comments from the general public, for the most part I seemed to have done a good job. As I said I have no hard feelings. I am thankful for the time I was allowed to serve and I think it has prepared me for future endeavours.”
The completed extension of Wallblake Airport, now a delight for screaming executive jets, is a major accomplishment for Smith who served as the Government’s Project Manager. “I hope that the general public of Anguilla will feel proud of that particular project,” he said. “I commend the Government for entrusting a young Anguillian to oversee this important development. I think that was a great step on the Government’s part and, considering that it was a very successful project, I think every Anguillian ought to be proud of that achievement.”
Mr. Smith still continues to serve as Chairman of the Ports Development Project Board. That body has also already seen the completion of a new cargo jetty at Road Bay for small vessels; the commencement of work on three jetties at Blowing Point now in an advanced stage of construction and initial plans for the building of a major cargo port development project at Corito. “If given the opportunity, I certainly would continue to serve on the Ports Project Board,” said Smith who has a reputation of getting things done. “I have spoken to the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry [Larry Franklin] saying that I am available for any assistance I can give him or the Government.”
If there is any concern Smith has, it is this: “The growth of the private sector is putting the Government to task and they are losing some good workers but that shouldn’t be,” he observed. “Government cannot compete with the private sector but what Government can do is to ensure that workers are treated with respect. Workers should be shown clearly that their services are valued from all aspects of the structure. We need not be insulted by certain actions. Once people are treated with respect and shown that their work is valued, those who truly love what they are doing and committed to, will have no reason to leave the public service,” he emphasised.
Now that he has left the public service, Smith is in the process of setting up a consulting firm – FGS Consulting Limited as part of his private sector services. The company will look at all aspects of property development such as architecture, engineering, quantity surveying, project management and maintenance. “It will be a network of young Anguillian/Caribbean consultants producing work in various fields,” he explained.
“I am eagerly looking forward to making a positive impact at the golf course project and certainly in everything thing else I do, including getting some good clients for FGS Consulting to make a further contribution to Anguilla, “ he stated.
Smith, who has done work for Flag Luxury Properties during his vacation, has praised the company’s work in Anguilla. “The developers are very decent employers. For the time I have been there I recognised that they are committed to the development of Anguilla’s people. Efforts have been made to ensure that every step of the way that Anguillians and Caribbean people are in their employ. Their respect for the Government and people of Anguilla is there and it is really a comfort working in that particular environment. I have no qualms about it. I think people need to understand what the developer and the project are all about,” he went on. “There are a lot of misconceptions out there and people need to stop the suspicion.”
Beyond his present engagements, Fritz Smith, who resides at Mount Fortune, East End, with his family, leaves room for other interests later on. He has no particular interest in public life and politics, as of now, but has not ruled it out in the future. “It is an option,” he laughed.
Nat Hodge