Attorney General Anand Ramlogan must say categorically who was responsible in the scrapped NP contract issue and whether criminal charges will be instituted against anyone, according to PNM Senator Fitzgerald Hinds. He made the declaration during yesterday's Senate session while contributing to debate on a report by a committee concerning legislative proposals for public procurement. Citing the Mary King and NP contract issues, Hinds said it was clear there was bid-rigging in the NP matter, since the Attorney General had found inconsistencies.
Seeking answers, Hinds, however, said the AG had not said who was responsible in the issue, where persons went wrong and what criminal action might flow from that. He said the UNC-led People's Partnership's plan to build another airport in central Trinidad also had raised concerns of a repeat of the UNC Government's Piarco development project for which some persons were currently before court. He said: "They have a fetish with airports. They gave the (Piarco) contract to friends without proper bidding and the upshot of this was many have had to go to court and more may have to go to court although they're fighting hard to avoid it."
HInds said the name of Calder Hart had been bandied about by the PP, yet the same procurement issue (of Hart's time) has been affecting the PP. He defended PNM leader Keith Rowley against PP Senator David Abdulah, who said Rowley had missed meetings of the committee which did the procurement. Abdulah said Rowley opted for his Monday morning Opposition press conferences instead of committee meetings. He said the PNM had no moral authority to pontificate about procurement.
But Hinds said: "He (Abdulah) needs to say why his prime minister is unable to attend important meetings early on Monday mornings." Hinds trashed comments by one Peter O'Connor, who, on the Jack Warner issue, he said had come out in favour of the Works Minister, rather than considerations about integrity. Hinds also queried if Finance Minister Winston Dookeran was heading for "executive leadership" after giving up the COP helm.