TT donates US$2M aid for Hurricane Katrina victims

According to a statement from the Prime Minister’s office, the donation is to be made to the US government for relief to victims in the states of Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi, which were affected by the hurricane earlier this month.

However, when contacted yesterday, Minister of Finance Conrad Enill could not say how and when the funds would be disbursed, nor from where the funds would come.

The minister would not say if the money was to be specifically donated to affected Trinidad and Tobago nationals, or to be added to cash donations from other countries to be disbursed in aid of all victims.

So far, more than 90 countries have offered various forms of assistance to the victims.

Meanwhile, Opposition Leader Basdeo Panday told Newsday that while the Government’s gesture to assist people in difficulty was commendable, he hoped that Prime Minister Patrick Manning would extend the same courtesy to the "needy in Trinidad and Tobago that he extends to foreigners."