Cabinet cannot substitute itself as a tenders committee

Political leader of the Tobago Forwards Christlyn Moore says Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley setting up a Cabinet sub-committee to find a ferry for the sea bridge “is as ridiculous as Rohan Sinanan (Minister of Works and Transport) asking a party hack to go and find a boat.”

Moore, commenting on the announcement at last Thursday’s post-Cabinet news conference at the Diplomatic Centre, St Ann’s by Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister Stuart Young that the latest tender process by the Port Authority has failed to provide a ferry for the sea bridge, and that Rowley has mandated a four-member Cabinet sub-committee to take find a ferry in the shortest possible time, declared:

“Cabinet cannot pervert a tenders’ committee, Cabinet cannot replace a tenders’ committee, Cabinet cannot substitute itself as a tenders’ committee, so I am not too sure what is going to be

achieved by this committee going out and finding a boat. It is as ridiculous as Rohan Sinanan (Minister of Works and Transport) asking a party hack to go and find a boat, where are we going with this?”

Minority Councillor in the Tobago House of Assembly (THA), Dr Faith B Yisrael said that the news that the Port tendering process has failed shows that the People’s National Movement (PNM)-led central government does not care about Tobago.

“It seems to be Trinidad, and then Tobago not a singular country, Trinidad and Tobago. This is the sixth tender that we know about that has resulted in absolutely nothing happening. The entire economy of Tobago thrives based upon us having to travel freely between Trinidad and Tobago.

“Having this delayed for yet another time, it is just going to continue wrecking the economy of Tobago. This Cabinet appointed whatever-it-is would just be another sham because there are very clear instructions, there are very clear regulations about how services are to be procured in Trinidad and Tobago, and none of them include Cabinet members being involved in the process.

“The tenders’ board has very clear instructions, the Port Authority of Trinidad and Tobago has very clear instructions about how the tendering process should be completed. I simply have no confidence in this Cabinet whatever,” said Yisrael.