Antigua and Barbuda’s Prime Minister Gaston Browne has hit back at criticism directed at Minister of Works Maria Browne over ongoing road repairs on the Sir Sidney Walling Highway.

MP George Wehner had publicly labelled her the “worst Minister of Works ever” in a social media post, questioning the quality of the recent resurfacing works along the highway between Willikies and St John’s.

Wehner alleged that despite millions spent resurfacing stretches of the Sir Sidney Walling, Pares, Glanvilles, and Willikies highways, sections are now being dug up, leading to an “uneven patchwork” on the road. He further questioned whether taxpayers should accept what he described as “substandard” work, claiming the total cost of the project was $100 million.

Responding to the remarks, Prime Minister Browne defended the Works Minister, explaining that the repairs were necessary due to quality issues identified during an engineering assessment.

“It’s our distinguished, highly performing Minister of Works, who got her engineer to assess the quality of the work,” the Prime Minister said. “Failure was determined, and CO Williams was mandated to replace that section of the road at their cost.”

He dismissed the criticism as baseless, adding, “Minister Maria Browne for the win. Eat your heart out.”

The Prime Minister’s remarks come amid growing public scrutiny over infrastructure projects and concerns about the durability of roadworks across the country.