PM: Government has to 'make hard decisions' on Cepep, URP

Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar maintains the government has to “make hard decisions now” as she addressed public concerns over the job losses being suffered by the cancellation of Community-Based Environmental Protection and Enhancement Programme (Cepep) contracts and firing of Unemployment Relief Programme (URP) workers.

Hundreds of URP workers were terminated with immediate effect on September 10 and given one month's salary.

On June 27, some 10,500 Cepep workers and roughly 360 Cepep contractors were terminated and less than week later, 4,608 workers and contractors at the National Reforestation and Watershed Programme were fired.

The government has repeatedly said the moves are part of its drive to address corruption.

Minister of Rural Development and Local Government Khadijah Ameen, under whom the URP programme falls, said the government is restructuring the programme to root out systemic corruption.

Speaking with journalists outside Parliament on September 12, Persad-Bissessar said the situation was unfortunately necessary.

“I love people but I don't like ghosts. And therefore we have to weed out the corrupt ones. We have to weed out the ghosts.”

She reiterated previous claims that the programmes harboured criminal elements.

“Our intelligence coming from the TT Police Service and the other protective services is not just about the corruption and the ghost gangs, it’s the infiltration by criminal elements.”

“As you know, I am totally against any criminals at any stage. Maybe we can't stop it… but we have to do all we can to root out criminality. That is a very important factor in the exercise that we are undertaking with URP”

Persad-Bissessar was asked about a small group of protesters who hung and beat an effigy of Public Utilities Minister Barry Padarath in Woodford Square opposite the Parliament as MP’s arrived.

She suggested she understood why the protesters were upset but added, “Hard decisions always bring some anger and pain. But we have to make hard decisions now.

“We cannot go through five years doing things the same way. (That) is a form of insanity. We will have to make changes.”

She said everyone will not be pleased but said it is to be expected.

“There will always be some who will be hurt or some just angry. I cannot control that. That is human nature.

“So the effigy out there, but this is TT, where bacchanal and parody and humour, they're our hallmarks."

Persad-Bissessar suggested the budget, though, could bring some relief for those who have been affected with several measures set to be revealed then.

“In the budget… we will roll out and give more details. But we don't intend to just dismiss these persons.

“We do have plans for job creation which I'll share with you on another occasion."