Imbert: $$ given to Works Ministry to fix, build roads

FINANCE Minister Colm Imbert said his ministry continues to provide funding to the Works and Transport Ministry to undertake work on roads throughout Trinidad.

Imbert spoke at a meeting of the Standing Finance Committee of the House of Representatives on Tuesday.

"Over the years, we have supplemented the funds appropriated for the Ministry of Works for road repairs and road paving through loan financing."

As opposition MPs made inaudible comments, Imbert said it appeared the UNC did not want to know the facts about how money is allocated to the ministry for roadworks.

He claimed the UNC was "terrorising" Works and Transport Minister Rohan Sinanan.

Committee chairman Bridgid Annisette-George advised Imbert to rephrase his comment.

"Most certainly. They were harassing the minister," Imbert replied.

Annisette-George told him, "Withdraw that and try another word."

Imbert said he considered opposition MPs telling him he had no plan "to be harassment."

He also withdrew that comment, on Annisette-George's instructions.

Imbert said, "It is a matter of public record that over the last several years, the Ministry of Finance has made funds available to the Ministry of Works, by way of loan financing.

"We will continue to support the Ministry of Works with appropriate loan financing so that he (Sinanan) can fix, as he plans to do, every single road in Trinidad."

Sinanan said the ministry has a $2 billion work plan for road repair and upgrade projects.

Barataria/San Juan MP Saddam Hosein claimed Government has no idea how to spend money to fix roads.

Sinanan rejected that claim.

"It is proper planning."

Sinanan said this is why the PNM was able to open the Solomon Hochoy Highway Extension Project and the UNC did not.

At the commissioning ceremony for the project on October 14, the Prime Minister said while tenders were received for the project in April 2010, the PNM government did not award a contract before May 24, 2010 – the date on which it lost the general election to the People's Partnership.

On February 20, 2011, then works and transport minister Jack Warner announced the award of the contract in Parliament

Sinanan also said the Secondary Roads Reform Company and National Quarries had been transferred to his ministry from the Rural Development and Local Government and Energy ministries respectively.

He added that both companies will assist the ministry in its efforts to fix and upgrade roads.

Later in the meeting, Imbert rejected claims from Oropouche East MP Dr Roodal Moonilal and Oropouche West MP Davendranath Tancoo that the budget documents were irrelevant and misleading in terms of the information they contained.

He said the documents deal with actual, original, revised and project expenditure and are finalised two weeks before the budget is presented.

"The revised figure is exactly that. It is not an actual figure."

Imbert said it was wrong to say the information in the documents was inaccurate and misleading.

"It is the best that the budget division (of the Finance Ministry) can do at the time (before the budget is presented)."

Imbert added the actual figures for expenditure will be finalised at the end of the financial year.

He said this has happened for the last 18 years that Moonilal has been a parliamentarian, "Long enough to qualify for a pension."