PNM leader Keith Rowley wants to know why Fraud Squad detectives are not probing a report by the auditor general that the Ministry of Sport was "replete with all kinds of irregularities involving huge sums of money."He said the ministry has not been able to explain the financial irregularities to the auditor general.Rowley made the statement in Rio Claro on Tuesday night while addressing a political meeting in the build-up to local government elections.
Responding to a query by Sport Minister Anil Roberts about his having a BMW X6, Rowley said he did own it.He said he bought the car after taking a $350,000 loan which all MPs are entitled to. It cost $420,000.Referring to the People's Partnership campaign launch on Monday night at Harris Promenade, San Fernando, Rowley told party supporters the PP had spent the "whole night" talking about him.He said he was neither a candidate nor the government.
He added: "You spent the whole night speaking about me and telling the voters that the reason you must not vote them out of the office is because if you vote them out of office you will be voting the PNM into office. Well, we say thank God. Thank God you will be doing that.
"So this nonsense about splitting votes is based on this arrogance that maybe because of your religion, or your race, or your class...after you play the fool for three-and-a-half years and they get a steel-tip boots in their rear end, they telling you now to keep the votes together. Don't split the votes so they could survive."Rowley said the three PNM-controlled corporations–Port-of-Spain, San Juan and Point Fortin–were the only ones which were not involved in any bacchanal at this time.
He also claimed that candidates from the Congress of the People, one of the parties in the coalition government, were flocking to the PNM.The party's chairman Franklin Khan said the PNM was the only stable political party in the country. Khan said the PNM was not in an alliance with anyone. He was responding to statements by Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar at her People's Partnership local government campaign launch on Monday that the PNM was in an alliance with Jack Warner's Independent Liberal Party.
"The PNM is not in an alliance with anybody, PNM remains PNM," Khan added.