CEPEP created 11,000 jobs in less than a year: Moonilal

Roodal Moonilal told the House of Representatives there was a history of nepotism and unlawful activity in the Environmental Protection and Enhancement Programme (CEPEP) under the former Manning PNM administration.

And he said this is the reason why the People's Partnership government has dismissed 47 CEPEP contractors.

The Housing Minister, whose portfolio includes CEPEP, said the former government allowed CEPEP to operate without transparency and accountability. 

Moonilal was responding to a question from opposition MP Donna Cox who wanted to know why the government's action has forced 2,500 people to be out of work.

The minister said, “Many of the contractors were involved in crime while others were friends and families who got contracts. Imagine, even General Council members (of the PNM) got CEPEP contracts."  

Moonilal noted that when the previous government started the programme it was designed for three years. "It was never agreed for contractors to be employed for eight years. Some areas in T&T do not even know what a CEPEP shirt looks like.”

The minister told legislators that from May 2011 to the present time, CEPEP created 11,000 people. He explained that one initiative was the establishment of an Unemployment Bureau in Chaguanas that has been able to identify unemployed citizens. 

He added that CEPEP would be working closely with the Ministry of Science and Tertiary Education to enrol skilled workers with the On The Job Training programme. 

He also said CEPEP will soon be launching a marine programme to maintain beaches and rivers throughout the country.