Don’t blame PP for red sand shortage

Moonilal, who was housing minister under the PP and line minister for the Estate Management Business Development Corporation (EMBD) insisted, “When we were in office, we kept the supply flowing.” At the post-Cabinet news conference at the Diplomatic Centre in St Ann’s on Thursday, Rambharat said the EMBD purportedly issued letters of award to six contractors to operate its sand pits on June 10, 2015.

Rambharat said the PP was aware that these sandpits were being operated without a mining license.

He said the EMBD’s checks found no evidence of this and asked Moonilal to assist in finding any documentation that would verify or disprove this. Moonilal refused to assist Rambharat and accused him of causing a construction crisis in the country. “He should resign,” Moonilal said.

He quipped, “Minister Rambharat should spend more time doing his ministerial work rather than on the shooting range.

“On Thursday, Rambharat said interim measures have been implemented to keep the sand pits in operation.

He said the EMBD will issue a request for proposals that will see the pits being operated in a more efficient manner.

He said instead of sand pit operators being paid a flat fee to operate the pits, the fees paid to them will now be directly linked to the amount of sand mined from the pits.