Kamla: ‘Wife’s club’ in Cabinet

“Something is happening in Trinidad and Tobago, which was reflective of the story,” Persad-Bissessar said in an analogy of one of the 14th century writer’s best known pieces from “The Canterbury Tales.” “I’m talking about the wife club, tonight I want to tell you the story of the wives here in Trinidad and Tobago,” the former prime minister said at a United National Congress public meeting for the local government campaign in Barrackpore, claiming the wife of a senior government minister was a shareholder of a company which had been paid $55 million by the Housing Development Corporation.

“Fifty-five million for that wife, another company receiving contracts from the HDC and this time the contract amount is $55 million dollar payments, what appears to be happening as in Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, the women seem to hold the power but really we have to ask, are these ministers, the men hiding behind their wives to make money off the government and off the country,” she told supporters at Kanhai Presbyterian Primary School.

She did not call the full name, but spoke of someone with the surname Khan, then said she hoped the Energy Minister (Franklin Khan) would not deny the link.In television interviews last night, the Energy Minister said his wife did own a company, started in 2005, in which he was not a shareholder but denied any wrong-doing.

Finance Minister Colm Imbert’s wife Suzanne Williams-Imbert recently filed legal action over reports of contracts between HDC and her company, Bolt Trinidad Ltd.

As Persad-Bissessar put the spotlight on the financial affairs of the family businesses of members of Government she noted, at the same time, that cane farmers were still awaiting outstanding payments and have been asked to “accept less than the amount that you are entitled to and they want you to sign that you would take the money...” “I tell you do not sign those letters, do not take the less money, go to your lawyer (Gerald) Ramdeen and let us fight them in the court to get the full amount of money that you are due,” she said.

And in urging the people of Barrackpore to vote for the Opposition party and retain control of the Princes Town Regional Corporation, she said taxi fares had risen to $15 per person from Barrackpore to San Fernando since the prices of fuel were increased over the past 14 months.

“Right here in Barrackpore because the price of gas has increased once, twice and the Minister laughing, and he is laughing about raising it again, today you have to pay $15 from Barrackpore to get to San Fernando,” she said.

Persad-Bissessar also hit plans for the return of the aluminium plant, saying the People’s National Movement government’s lack of vision was the main factor for the re-emergence of the failed smelter project.

At a mass meeting at Point Fortin on Wednesday night, Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley had signalled government’s intention to revisit the project once the “economics look good”.

However, Persad-Bissessar told the crowd which had crammed into the school and overflowed into the adjacent courtyard, that after 14 months in office, the ruling PNM administration “cannot stand up on a platform to tell you one project they have delivered.” “The Rowley government is traversing backwards to bring up plans that the (Patrick) Manning government had and which you rejected in 2010, the whole country rejected,” she said, adding, “and he was really misinforming the population when he says that the smelter project was never stopped, we stopped the smelter project when we came into office.” ”We won the arbitration against Sural (Spanish aluminium company), there is an outstanding dispute resolution that is to go for arbitration with a company,” she said.