AG appoints 5-member team to probe state agencies; seeks citizens' help

Attorney General Ananad ramlogan told reporters Friday the Government of Trinidad and Tobago has appointed a five-member team to "pursue vigorously any wrongdoing" in State agencies.

He said the team of forensic auditors, which is led by British Queen's Counsel Alan Newman, will conduct several probes at the same time.

And he wants a report in three months.

The team includes two British nationals, financial expert Martin Hall and attorney Akbar Ali and local attorneys Mark Seepersad and Gerald Ramdeen.

"We intend to pursue vigorously any wrongdoing and to deliver to the people of this country the justice that they seek for what took place under the previous administration," Ramlogan promised.
The team will focus on the University of Trinidad and Tobago (UTT), Petrotrin, The Sport Company of Trinidad and Tobago (SporTT), the Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission (T&TEC), the Evolving Tecknologies and Enterprise Development Co Ltd (eTecK) and the Scarborough Hospital, among others.

It will also conduct an audit on the purchase of a Water Taxi "which cost more to repair than to purchase," Ramlogan said.

He issued a call to anyone who has information of wrongdoing to provide it to the team.

"We cannot do it alone and for that reason, we, therefore, require the assistance of all those citizens, employees and officers, all those third-party contractors and persons with knowledge of the wrongdoing to come forward," Ramlogan said.

Ramlogan insisted that contrary to what some critics are saying this is not a witch-hunt. "This is a matter in which we have already conducted audits in several cases, and we know what we are about," he said.

He added, "So what we are looking at now is gathering real evidence and the assistance of those members of the public who can point us in the right direction to let us know what are the pressure points in the system."

Ramlogan said since the government assumed office it has receieved numerous claims of corruption.

"We were literally bombarded by complaints by those who were within the system and were unhappy with what was taking place but could not say or voice their objection for fear of victimisation," Ramlogan said.

He did not say how much it would cost to conduct the investigations. However he made it clear that "no price is too heavy for this country to pay to unravel the corruption and mismanagement that took place under the PNM to ensure it never happens again."