Panday accuses gov't of "wild spending" for CHOGM

Opposition Leader Basdeo Panday has asked the government of Trinidad and Tobago for a detailed report on the cost to host the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM).

And he has requested from Sen. Mariano Browne, who is the cabinet coordinator for the event, to state publicly which public companies have been granted contacts for the international summit.

"The truth is we cannot afford to host such a forum because our treasury is bleeding," Panday pointed out in a media statement Wednesday.

"Many are opposed to government’s wild spending and one day our children will have to repay all the debts accumulated by this regime, which does not seem to understand the art of saving a dollar for tomorrow.

“If we had water in our taps and our roads were fixed and all citizens were surviving under dignified circumstances, I could understand the desire to host such a meeting,” Panday said.

"The wild spending is especially frightening as Trinidad and Tobago dives further into debt, while unemployment is at an all time low, and businesses are slowly closing up shop," the former prim e minister added.

He said during the Summit of the Americas in April the opposition requested a detailed financial report of the event.

So far the government has not given a final, detail cost of that event, which included the purchase of dozens of new VIP vehicles and the chartering of two cruise ships.

"The Prime Minister is on public record as saying that while a total of $503 million was originally allocated in the 2009 Budget to host the Summit of the Americas and Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, allocation was increased to $632 million, but this did not include a wide variety of infrastructural work done to facilitate the meeting. One wonders what the “real” figure is to date,” Panday said.