ECA slams UNC: Caroni fraud allegations false

Speaking during Tuesday’s Budget debate in the Senate, Mark had called for the Fraud Squad to intervene at Caroni, and for the ECA and John Williams to provide them with information on certain instances of alleged corruption at Caroni.

Rambharat said the ECA was hired in June 2003 through a competitive tendering process to design and coordinate a training/retraining/counselling programme for Caroni workers who participated in the enhanced VSEP. Since he was both an ECA director and chairman of Caroni’s tenders committee, Rambharat said he excused himself from that process and Mark’s allegations on this score were untrue since this is a matter of public record. In late 2002, he said Caroni’s board approved the refurbishment and rental of five dilapidated bungalows to W Connection Football Club at a cost of $175,000, and the club met this cost on the basis that it would be set off against the monthly rent. The ECA chairman added that the bungalows have been fully restored "without expenditure by Caroni" which could not have done so or provide watchmen for those properties.

He said Mark’s assertions about a five-acre site being given away and dozens of tractors being given to a magistrate were "entirely without merit and ridiculous."

Rambharat also indicated that Mark would be pleased to know that none of the railway lines from Ste Madeleine to Valley Line have been removed since efforts to secure an international buyer were unsuccessful. Noting that the rails have been subject to pilfering since Caroni stopped rail transport, Rambharat asked Mark what the former UNC regime had done to stop this. He said all ferrous scrap at the Usine Ste Madeleine sugar factory have been audited and documented, and Caribbean Ispat Ltd identified two contractors to remove the scrap.

Of the two, agreement was reached only with John Williams Construction Company to receive US$80 per tonne for the scrap without any expenditure by Caroni.

Rambharat added that the removal of the almost 2,000 tonnes of the scrap has improved the lives of many residents along the train line in contrast to the UNC’s policy on the matter.

He questioned what had the UNC done to prevent the sale of old sugar factories as ferrous scrap, and convert them into museums as advocated last month by Sahadeo. He also said $7,000 and not $2 million was the actual cost of the road works referred to by Mark.

While noting that Mark was protected by parliamentary privilege, Rambharat said a factual response was needed to rebut statements by Mark that were "entirely erroneous."

He added that the "bloodshed, suffering and civil unrest" predicted by the UNC when Caroni was restructured have not occurred, and the majority of its former workers are grateful for the restructure.