Finance Minister Colm Imbert must account to the people of Trinidad and Tobago for the total amount borrowed by the Latin American Development Bank, also called CAF.
Mr. Imbert must also show what use each of the loans was put to and, in specific terms, how they benefited citizens.
These loans will be repaid by the people of Trinidad and Tobago long after the failed PNM administration has been voted out of national office.
The latest loans, amounting to US$160 million, are added to previous borrowings by CAF starting in 2016 and totaling US$1.2 billion.
Therefore, Trinidad and Tobago owes CAF nearly TT$9 billion and has had no responsibility to disburse the funds.
Previous loans were intended to improve national infrastructure, but roads and bridges are the worst in the hemisphere and there is no record of any improvement work in recent years.
One of the two loan agreements signed on Tuesday provides for drainage works in communities hit by floods, but the Rowley government has shown no zeal to solve this serious recurring problem.
Mr. Imbert should detail the costs and timelines for previous CAF-sponsored projects and future efforts.
In relation to the loan of 120 million dollars for “strengthening the digital economy”, the minister must provide a status report for the digitization of the public sector.
The evidence shows that the Government is still in the early stages of digitization, and has not even completed the necessary essential works in the public sector.
While the global community has used digitization to become more efficient and competitive, T&T’s belated initiative remains a snail-paced one-man exercise with no track record of performance.
The Rowley government has a responsibility to report to the nation on all loans secured on behalf of the people, including nearly 9 billion TT from CAF.
There should also be periodic reporting on the progress of projects financed by loans.
Rushton Paradise,
MP FOR MAYARO
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