TriniTuner.com  |  Latest Event:  

Forums

*****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

this is how we do it.......

Moderator: 3ne2nr Mods

User avatar
UML
Trying to catch PATCH AND VEGA
Posts: 6577
Joined: April 9th, 2007, 11:08 pm

*****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby UML » June 6th, 2010, 10:40 am

As the new government settles down many "mark go buss" in the coming days, weeks, years of the former government and the boards of many organizations. So.....

.....Let the games begin!!! :mrgreen:

I look forward to the contributions of their supporters :wink:


HCL's billion-dollar Deal
Beleaguered CL Financial subsidiary signs TT$1.073 billion debt-restructuring contract on eve of May 24 general election
Camini Marajh Investigative Desk
Sunday, June 6th 2010
http://www.trinidadexpress.com/index.pl ... ba=NWSNews

Osbourne Nurse, the Government appointed-chairman of Home Construction Ltd, the flagship real-estate company of troubled financial giant CL Financial, pushed through a controversial billion-dollar debt-restructuring deal with State-owned First Citizens Bank (FCB) on the eve of the May 24 general election.

Sources familiar with the transaction told the Sunday Express the $1.073 billion debt-restructuring contract signed days before the elections, on May 20, contains a controversial payment of several millions in ’consultants’ fees’ to Pan American Finance (PAF) Securities, an FCB-hired firm of consultants from Miami, USA.

(Signing of the contract) It also paves the way for Nurse, the Government-appointed adviser on the CL Financial recovery effort, to put in two senior officers of his choice to manage the financial and organisational restructuring of the cash-strapped property development conglomerate.

Nurse, who is said to have pushed through the debt-restructuring deal over the objections of the group’s management, refused to discuss the transaction, saying he has no intention of making HCL’s business affairs public.

Reached for comment, Nurse, the former executive chairman of the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) and a key figure in the creation of FCB (merger of three failed indigenous banks), responded angrily to questions about the lumping of FCB restructuring-related transaction costs into the May 20 contract.



’Let who is giving you information give you the correct information,’ was Nurse’s response to questions about the cash-strapped HCL being saddled with a contractual burden to pay for a report commissioned by its main banker in January 2009.

Pressed further, he said: ’Why are you giving credence to mischief?’ Asked again whether HCL was being forced to pay FCB-related costs on the PAF analysis, Nurse said: ’You check and see what is standard between any bank and its client, that is all you have to do.’

But is it true? Nurse was asked. ’It is a foolish question,’ he dismissed. Why is it foolish? According to Nurse: ’Because it arises out of an intent to make mischief.’ Asked again if the contract he signed on May 20 obliged the property conglomerate into paying FCB restructuring-related fees, he said: ’I am not telling you HCL’s business.’

Sources, however, say the imposition of FCB’s consultants’ fees was a bitter bone of contention between the Nurse-headed board of Government-appointed directors and the Lawrence Duprey management of HCL, the country’s premier property development company.

The controversial contract signed by Nurse and HCL company secretary Roxanne Husbands does not specifically identify PAF Securities. But a clause under the heading ’expenses’ says this: ’The borrower shall reimburse the lenders for all reasonable out-of-pocket fees and expenses, including legal fees, consultants’ fees and stamp duties related to this agreement.’

The Miami-based firm of consultants presented its report to the state-owned bank in February 2009, one month after the global financial crisis brought the giant conglomerate, with assets of $100 billion, to its knees. A key recommendation that was adopted by the State-owned bank, and later by the Osbourne Nurse board of directors, was the sale of principal assets, specifically some crown jewels in HCL’s trophy cabinet:

- Four shopping malls -Trincity, Long Circular, Valpark Shopping Plaza and Atlantic Plaza

- Its chain of Tru Valu supermarkets

- Holiday Inn Express

- Other assets and land

Sources close to the transaction were sharply critical of the decision to sell off prized assets. One analyst likened what was taking place to a fire sale, with prospective buyers lined up waiting in the wings. Other financial and industry observers questioned the numbers in the PAF valuation of assets.

One financial expert claimed the numbers were way off the chart and was a virtual giveaway.

The PAF analysis gave the four shopping malls an equity value range of between $20 million to $100 million, assuming a debt portfolio of $700 million. By its own calculations, PAF estimated a fair market value range of between $720 million to $800 million for the shopping malls. The four malls generate an annual income in excess of $150 million, according to insiders.

Tru Valu was placed in a valuation range of $90 million to $105 million and given an equity value listing of $36 million to $51 million, assuming $54 million in debt. Holiday Inn Express, which is close to the Piarco Airport and Trincity Mall was valued between $65 million to $75 million. The hotel, which has an outstanding debt of $49 million to the Unit Trust Corporation (UTC), was given an estimated equity value of $16 million to $26 million.

A source close to the company said the PAF numbers were somewhat conservative and the proposed Nurse/ FCB sale of assets’ plan was not in HCL’s best interest. The Sunday Express was told stiff management opposition to the proposed sale of assets has forced Nurse to dramatically scale back on the $1 billion debt-restructuring plan, which had received the board of directors’ approval.

He has negotiated, instead, a rollover of outstanding debt which, under the FCB structure, pushes up the timeline for HCL’s development programme. And depending on who you talk to, the jury is still out on whether this is the best debt restructuring approach for the beleaguered group. Insiders admit the FCB structure is going to box (HCL) the group into a corner with little wriggle room for manoeuvre. For now, however, the group gets to keep its crown jewels until such time it is no longer able to meet its debt and service interest payments.





PM means Prime Minister
Architect Stephen Mendes confirms Patrick Manning's involvement in Guanapo church
Sasha Mohammed CCN Senior Multimedia Investigative Journalist
Sunday, June 6th 2010
http://www.trinidadexpress.com/index.pl ... ba=NWSNews

Architect Stephen Mendes, the man who has held the key as to whether former prime minister Patrick Manning was personally involved in the commissioning of the controversial Guanapo church project, has finally broken his silence on the matter, confirming the ’PM’ he wrote about in a letter dated May 2, 2006, in fact, referred to Prime Minister Patrick Manning.

The revelation comes exactly three weeks after the country’s new Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar held a news conference on May 15, 2010, nine days before the May 24 polls, in her capacity as leader of the People’s Partnership, to unveil documents purported to link Manning directly to the Guanapo Heights project where a church was being built on State lands for Manning’s personal spiritual adviser Rev Juliana Pena.

From those documents, Persad-Bissessar produced Mendes’ May 2 letter, which was addressed to former Urban Development Corporation of Trinidad and Tobago (UDeCOTT) executive chairman Calder Hart, and in it, he stated:

’The structural drawings developed to date are not in accordance with the recent changes made to the architectural drawings as a result of recent PM’s requests. Additionally, they need to be developed in far greater detail.

’Additionally, the consultants need to develop and finalise their general arrangement drawings due to the recent changes called for by the PM, including those related to the residential component appended to the church.’



In an exclusive sworn, signed statement to the CCN group on Friday, following several weeks of attempts to get him to comment on the controversial issue, Mendes said:

’The ’PM’ referred to in a letter I wrote, dated 2 May, 2006, which I addressed to the chairman of UDeCOTT, Calder Hart, was the then prime minister Patrick Manning.’

Manning has now famously said PM ’may mean Project Manager’. He, also, had said ’maybe’ Hart was involved in his ’personal capacity’, given that UDeCOTT had denied involvement of the company in the controversial project.

But by and large, Manning, who has publicly said he wants to be a preacher in the born-again Christian faith after he leaves politics, had never given any comprehensive statement on the matter,

In his statement to CCN, Mendes explains he had not responded to public calls to clarify what PM meant in the past three weeks due to his severe illness, which nearly cost him his life.

Mendes said, too, his family had been shielding him from the media and work, but he now felt well enough to make the statement confirming Manning’s personal involvement in the church.

But more than clearing up that matter, Mendes’ confirmation has the effect of again pinpointing a close personal relationship between Manning and Hart, who is currently under a criminal investigation for his alleged financial misappropriation in various UDeCOTT projects.

Hart skipped the country after a personal one-on-one meeting nearly two months ago with Manning and is yet to return amid an active police investigations into his dealings.

Mendes’ newest revelation about Manning’s personal role, also, could lead to the speeding up the criminal investigation requested by Persad-Bissessar into the matter where she claimed the entire fiasco was in breach of the Prevention of Corruption Act, a criminal offence which carries a severe jail term and $500,000 fine.

In Mendes’ statement, the architect explains in detail his involvement in the controversial project, which was commissioned in 2005 in the name of Manning’s official spiritual adviser, Rev Pena.

The name of the Church is the Lighthouse of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Shanghai Construction Ltd, the Chinese firm involved in its construction on over four hectares of State lands at the Heights of Guanapo, Arima, at a cost of $30m, also built the prime minister’s official residence under the Manning administration.

Previous reports have noted Pena was introduced to Mendes by Calder Hart in 2005, and she appealed to the architect to do the design for the church pro bono.

He agreed to do so, and in his sworn statement to CCN, he noted that:

’Since my first introduction to the Rev Juliana Pena in 2005, I personally have not seen nor heard from her. Mr Calder Hart seemed to have taken up the role of representing her after that.’

Manning had famously stood up in Parliament in February and said he was not involved in the personal commissioning of the church, and taxpayers’ dollars were not funding the multi-million-dollar project. But Mendes states:

’I met the then prime minister Patrick Manning at Whitehall at Calder Hart’s request on two occasions, at which my design of the church was discussed.’

He adds:

’From my records, it appears that I ceased doing any design work on this project at least three years ago, neither have I communicated with the consulting engineers within the last two years, in respect of the design of this project. About this time, Calder Hart had agreed with me that the project should go the design/build route and effectively, I ceased doing any further work.’

Mendes also confirmed that despite the letters for Town and Country Planning approvals going to him, he was never the applicant nor owner of this project.

He also stated he had ’no idea whatsoever of how this project was to be financed, nor who was responsible for it and how the design for the church found its way apparently on to drawings for the prime minister’s residence.’

When she had exposed the documents on the church, Persad-Bissessar had provided drawings prepared by a firm, Architectural Design and Research Institute of Tongii University (Group) Co Ltd. These drawings identified the general contractor as SCG International (Trinidad and Tobago) Ltd, Shanghai Construction Group.

’What is of great interest to me is the client. The client is listed as UDeCOTT,’ Persad-Bissessar had said.

’In other words, the construction drawings were prepared for UDeCOTT and for the use of Shanghai Construction Group! There should really be no surprise there since Shanghai Construction Group was brought into the country to construct buildings for UDeCOTT,’ she had pointed out.

She had said the church project was listed on the drawings as ’Outdoor stage project of Prime Minister’s House’. Persad Bissessar has noted this addition was not built at the prime minister’s residence in St Ann’s but another outdoor stage building was constructed there, also by Shanghai Construction Group, at a cost of $10 million in 2009.

She had said she had the drawings and photographs analysed to confirm the building described in the plans, done by Architectural Design and Research Institute of Tongii University (Group) Co Ltd, was exactly the same as that being used for the building at the site of the church.

Questioning how the similarities of the designs-for the outdoor stage project of the prime minister’s house and Guanapo church-and the same company was involved in both projects, Persad-Bissessar said the matter suggested ’criminal conduct and the abuse of State funds and lands by the prime minister of this country for personal gain.’ She had sent her file to the Acting Commissioner of Police James Philbert and Director Of Public Prosecutions Roger Gaspard asking for a criminal probe. She had also requested an Integrity Commission probe into the matter.

Yesterday, in a telephone interview with CCN, Persad-Bissessar, now Prime Minister of T&T, said the matter was in the hands of the police.

She stressed, however:

’I would have never revealed those documents if I were not sure of their authenticity. I hope that Mr Mendes is willing to cooperate with the police in this matter since it is one of public interest for the citizens of this country. I’m also assured that the police will do their job in properly investigating and getting to the bottom of this worrying issue.’

In his statement to CCN, Mendes said he was more than willing to assist the police in their probe, noting:

’I welcome any enquiry into the church and would be happy to cooperate in further clarifying what I can on this issue.

Neither Manning, Hart nor Pena has ever offered further clarifications on the controversial Guanapo church project.

User avatar
Vinesh
3NE 2NR for life
Posts: 178
Joined: June 2nd, 2008, 3:08 am
Contact:

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby Vinesh » June 6th, 2010, 12:54 pm

men silent

User avatar
iDynamic
Riding on 18's
Posts: 1693
Joined: July 7th, 2004, 3:15 pm
Location: Unknown Coordinates 0000 , 0000
Contact:

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby iDynamic » June 6th, 2010, 1:10 pm

wait nah u type all this out? ...hmm anyways good info

User avatar
DrunkenMaster16
Trying to catch PATCH AND VEGA
Posts: 6247
Joined: February 15th, 2004, 11:19 pm
Location: Bush, Beach, Swamp..Repeat.
Contact:

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby DrunkenMaster16 » June 6th, 2010, 1:29 pm

^^ Copy / Paste... works wonders.

User avatar
slick
3NE 2NR for life
Posts: 243
Joined: June 7th, 2007, 11:03 am
Location: Throwin ah frame
Contact:

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby slick » June 6th, 2010, 2:55 pm

Looks like Patrick Manning will be spending some quality time behind bars.

Oh how the mighty have fallen :lol: :lol: :lol:

User avatar
DrunkenMaster16
Trying to catch PATCH AND VEGA
Posts: 6247
Joined: February 15th, 2004, 11:19 pm
Location: Bush, Beach, Swamp..Repeat.
Contact:

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby DrunkenMaster16 » June 6th, 2010, 2:59 pm

Heard he bookin a plane ticket one way to Malaysia or was it Canada? even Sweden?!?!

brams112
punchin NOS
Posts: 3697
Joined: July 15th, 2008, 8:58 pm
Location: trinidad

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby brams112 » June 6th, 2010, 8:28 pm

first thing the outgoing party will say is revenge,,,so be it jail all of them including rowley,shortman,fat gul,teasharer,and others including project manager,calder,so on,oh how come the see ah oman did not see the bois wouldhave gotten their a$$ cut for elections

User avatar
AllTrac
TriniTuner Crew
Posts: 19985
Joined: April 17th, 2003, 11:43 pm
Location: iymc
Contact:

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby AllTrac » June 6th, 2010, 10:13 pm

to be honest, i dont think anything will come of it, i mean there WILL be investigations and some small frys would take the fall, their names would be plastered all over the media as guilty. But the high rollers (Manning, Hart etc) would forever be tangled and tied up in ongoing investigations, which would soon be forgotten, these men might end up passing away before its completed. Starting these investigations is just to show the public that the present administration is keeping true to their word, they would buss all the files and let the PNMites know all the corruption that went on under their noses in hope of swinging even more votes next election, but those of you hoping to see Manning and Hart behind bars, dont hold your breath.

User avatar
~Vēġó~
3NE 2NR Moderator
Posts: 45606
Joined: April 18th, 2003, 12:18 am
Location: Being the Change that I want to See
Contact:

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby ~Vēġó~ » June 6th, 2010, 10:17 pm

they should jail that fkn contractor who on day 25 and cyaar done pave 5km of main road......the mud and tar fest continues!!!! :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil:

User avatar
Morpheus
TriniTuner 24-7
Posts: 10729
Joined: July 22nd, 2004, 2:24 am

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby Morpheus » June 7th, 2010, 2:43 am

How far back are these investigations going? LoL. 9 years I'm sure...

1Brainwash

User avatar
Greypatch
3NE 2NR Moderator
Posts: 27561
Joined: April 22nd, 2003, 11:00 am
Location: On the Road....
Contact:

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby Greypatch » June 7th, 2010, 10:59 am

~Vēġó~ wrote:they should jail that fkn contractor who on day 25 and cyaar done pave 5km of main road......the mud and tar fest continues!!!! :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil:


ahahah

User avatar
VJTEK
3NE 2NR for life
Posts: 146
Joined: April 21st, 2006, 11:32 am
Location: The Socorro...mostly
Contact:

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby VJTEK » June 7th, 2010, 3:48 pm

Somewhere, in a mansion located in an upscale western neighbourhood, a certain Mr. "A F" has a hearty laugh.

User avatar
UML
Trying to catch PATCH AND VEGA
Posts: 6577
Joined: April 9th, 2007, 11:08 pm

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby UML » June 13th, 2010, 10:25 pm

Directors rake in big fees
Camini Marajh Investigative Desk
Sunday, June 13th 2010
http://www.trinidadexpress.com/index.pl ... ba=NWSNews


The Government-appointed caretaker board of the cash-strapped CL Financial Group has received tens of thousands of dollars in directors’ fees from an overdraft facility at RBTT bank, Park Street, Port of Spain, at a time when long-suffering depositors, policy holders and sundry creditors are being asked to hold strain.

The State oversight board of directors re-instituted directors’ fee payments in the post-government intervention period last July and on February 23 this year, increased the level of payments to more than double what they were being paid previously, a Sunday Express investigation has found.

The non-executive board of directors, chaired by Dr Shafeek Sultan-Khan, passed a written resolution on February 23 this year hiking directors’ fees to a high US$11,880. or TT$74,844, a quarter, from its previous level of US$5,000 per quarter.

Sultan-Khan, who is also chairman of Caribbean Airlines Ltd (CAL) and the Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA), collects some US$17,880 per quarter from the financially distressed conglomerate, in addition to a US$1,000 appearance fee per board meeting. Other directors, including deputy chairman and Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance, Alison Lewis, get an appearance fee of US$750 per board meeting, according to sources close to the situation.

Sultan-Khan was not immediately available for comment yesterday. Reached on his mobile, he said he was in Toronto, Canada, was driving and unable to speak to the Sunday Express.

Lewis was also not available for comment on her receipt of board fees from the parent board of CL Financial and subsidiary companies Home Construction Ltd (HCL), Angostura Ltd and Jamaican rum giant, Lascelles de Mercado.

Lewis is the State-appointed deputy chairman of the debt-burdened property development company and collects a monthly board fee of TT$7,500. She also receives an additional TT$5,000 a month to chair the human resources sub-committee, and another TT$2,000 a month to sit on the audit/finance committee of the HCL Board.

In all, the substantive permanent secretary in the Ministry of Finance receives a monthly income of over TT$37,936 from her various CL Financial board assignments. The Sunday Express was unable to confirm the fee payments for the Angostura and Lascelles boards.

And while CL Financial does not fall under the category of a State enterprise or statutory corporation, Cabinet-issued guidelines make it clear that public servants whose remuneration packages are determined by the Salaries Review Commission (SRC) should not benefit from additional perquisites. Permanent Secretaries fall under the purview of the SRC.

A circular memorandum, issued by the acting Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Finance in August 2008 says this: ’Please note that the fees and allowances outlined above constitute the total package for government appointees to statutory bodies, and are not payable to executive directors and positions for which remuneration are determined by the SRC. In instances where the chairmen of statutory bodies are currently in receipt of additional perquisites those arrangements should be terminated at the end of their current term.’

The memorandum contained a table of groups rated A to C and the related board governance fees. It also referenced the June 26, 2008 Cabinet Minute No.1720, which effectively increased board fees and travelling allowances for directors of State boards.

The payment of board fees to Lewis and State-hired management consultant, Osbourne Nurse, and others on the CL Financial board and its subsidiary companies at levels not enjoyed by the previous board of directors of the Lawrence Duprey-led group, has raised ethical and moral questions about the directors’ fiduciary duties in a near insolvency situation and the rights of depositors, policy holders and sundry creditors.

Duprey, the biggest shareholder and former executive chairman of CL Financial paid his directors board fees of US$5,000 per quarter up until mid-2008 when his privately owned conglomerate with assets of TT$100 billion ran into trouble. On average, directors of the parent board met three times a year, according to insiders.

Morals and ethics

Former diplomat and head of the Public Service, Reginald Dumas, said the payment of board fees from a near bankrupt private company under State management raises all sorts of questions relating to the role of senior public servants and their remuneration packages.

’Is a public servant sitting on one of these companies entitled to remuneration in addition to the salary he or she is getting as a public servant?’ he asked, noting that ’morals and ethics are interesting concepts when you come to business.’

Economist Dr Dhanaysar Mahabir said when these board rates are paid in bailout type situations, ultimately it is the ordinary man-in-the-street who pays. Saying that non-executive directors appointed by the State to the CL Financial Group should stand back from further bleeding the company, Mahabir said the fees were way in excess of SRC’s guidelines.

’It cannot be justified because there is no money,’ he said, adding that the payment of board fees should be reviewed.










STEAL of a deal
CL Financial top executive gets $2 million discount on luxury apartment
Camini Marajh Investigative Desk
Sunday, June 13th 2010
http://www.trinidadexpress.com/index.pl ... ba=NWSNews

Marlon Holder, former executive director of the Unit Trust Corporation and the man now occupying the top executive post in CL Financial, was the unwitting beneficiary of at least $2 million in a high-end real estate deal.

A week ago Holder told the Sunday Express he got lucky. Persons with knowledge of the One Woodbrook Place (OWP) transaction, however, said he paid substantively less than the listed price for the luxury 18th-floor, three-bedroom condominium with spectacular views of the sea and Queen’s Park Savannah.

Holder paid $3,347,484 on May 15, 2009 for the super luxury apartment in the sky. The listed price, according to OWP documents for Tower I, Unit T118F3BD at the time of the initial sale agreement, was $5,550,000. Holder closed the condo sale on May 14 this year.

Holder was said to be out of the country and did not immediately return messages left on his voice mail. but when the Sunday Express spoke to him a week ago, he claimed to be ignorant that identical sized apartments were selling for more than $5 million.

Holder, a former head of corporate banking at First Citizens Bank (FCB) and the lender of the ambitious $1 billion and counting real estate project for OWP’s two major creditors, FCB and UTC, said up until a week ago, he had no knowledge that any of the three-bedroom units had sold for over $5 million.

He expressed amazement that the units could fetch upwards of $5 million. ’I didn’t know I was so lucky until you told me,’ he said, saying he was clueless as to what happened there. ’I don’t know what happened there,’ he said of reports that several other buyers, including one on his floor, had paid the premium $5.5 million listed price.

Sources familiar with the transaction told the Sunday Express that Holder reserved a two-bedroom unit in April 2004 on the 11th floor of Tower II at a pre-construction price of $1.65 million. A standard escalation clause pushed the price upwards to $2.12 million, said sources, adding that by the time he requested an upgrade to a three-bedroom, his two bedroom unit carried a value of $2,650,000.

It is here that things get somewhat confusing. Did OWP pass on the benefit of the appreciated price on the two- bedroom pre-construction-priced unit sold to Holder? And if so, why was this benefit not provided to other buyers. Also, according to former managing director, Anthony Fifi, there was no exchange policy on the passover of deep discounts.

Fifi, who left Home Construction Ltd (HCL), the developer of the OWP project in July 2008, said even when prices went down, these three-bedroom units were selling for just under $4 million. Asked to comment on the Marlon Holder transaction, he said only: ’I think Marlon got a hell of a deal.’

Geoffrey Leid, a former HCL director and attorney-at-law, said unless and until he had the approval of HCL and Holder, he was unable to comment on the transaction. He admits to being involved, but said company/client confidentiality barred him from commenting.

Pressed on the matter, he said he couldn’t recall the specific timeline or the numbers involved, but hazarded a guess that the discounted price may not be unrelated to Holder’s request for an apartment swap.

Other executives involved in the Holder transaction, former chief executive officer Hayden Ameerali and acting CEO Richard Le Blanc could not be reached for comment.

The Sunday Express understands that the transfer of the three-bedroom unit Holder got was completed at the pre-construction 2004 prices. Insiders claim no one else benefited from that arrangement, including unit holders who requested upgrades because of view or size considerations.

Sources also claim Holder failed to declare a personal interest in OWP to the UTC board of directors. The UTC, under Holder provided some $320 million in loan facilities to OWP.

User avatar
UML
Trying to catch PATCH AND VEGA
Posts: 6577
Joined: April 9th, 2007, 11:08 pm

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby UML » July 6th, 2010, 8:16 am

http://guardian.co.tt/news/politics/201 ... er-5-years
Govt to pay $55m in rent over 5 years
Ken Ali
Published: 5 Jul 2010
Ken Ali

Four properties were rented by the Government before and after the general election for up to five years, at a total cost of some $55 million. This has prompted political and social activist Devant Maharaj, who made the discovery, to question the wisdom of signing such costly contracts in the midst of a general election. The Ministry of Public Administration confirmed two of the office space lease-rentals on May 20, a third on May 26 and the fourth on May 27. The general election was held on May 24. Maharaj recalled that then Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar, who was elected Prime Minister, had recommended there be no business dealings involving the public purse amid the election.

“I am not questioning the propriety of the contracts,” Maharaj stated yesterday, “but the timing, especially in light of the fact that there was a regime change.” The major office lease-rental would cost taxpayers $48 million over the next five years. In a document of May 20, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Public Administration, said the Cabinet had agreed to the rent-lease of 12,815.8 square metres at Aranjuez Estate to accommodate the Police Service. The monthly rent is $800,000. The facility includes parking space for 226 vehicles. The leaser, Aran 88 Ltd, is being paid at $5.80 a square foot.

The other agreement confirmed on May 20 is at a cost of $2,340,000 over three years. The respective property is at 141 Long Circular Road Maraval, owned by GAL Holdings Ltd. The government is paying $65,000 a month for 516.5 square metres. The rental value is $11.70 a square foot. The property is to accommodate Caribbean Telecommunications Union. A document from the ministry’s permanent secretary on May 26 indicated that a property at 65 Maracas Royal Road, Maracas, was being rented for three years at a monthly sum of $39,000. The total cost of the arrangement is $1.4 million.

The air-conditioned property will accommodate the Police Service. McEacharane’s Rental and Transport Service owns the property. A value of $7.14 a square foot has been placed. An air-conditioned property at 2 Tumpuna Park, Arima, was confirmed in a document of May 27 from the PS as being lease-rented. The agreement is for three years, at a cost of $95,000 a month, or $2.80 a square foot. The building’s owner is listed as Tumpuna Park Ltd.

User avatar
UML
Trying to catch PATCH AND VEGA
Posts: 6577
Joined: April 9th, 2007, 11:08 pm

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby UML » August 1st, 2010, 12:15 pm

$2m flag still haunts Sports Company
By Ria Taitt Political Editor

http://www.trinidadexpress.com/news/99677679.html

Story Created: Jul 31, 2010 at 1:19 AM ECT

Story Updated: Aug 1, 2010 at 2:55 AM ECT

The scandal and embarrassment of the $2 million legacy flag at the Hasely Crawford Stadium and the operations of the Sports Company of Trinidad and Tobago continue.

Sports Minister Anil Roberts, in a highly charged and fiery contribution to Parliament yesterday, said the details of a financial systems audit of the Sports Company revealed a string of irregularities including the leasing of expensive SUVs for the Executive Chairman and Executive Director, the creation of a ghost roof at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, the hiring of interns who never applied for work, the duplication of duties and responsbilities at extreme cost to the taxpayer and a host of other "madness" culminating in "abuse of office and downright unfair and corrupt practices" and flagrant breaches of procurement practices. It has led Ministry of Finance Auditors to recommend that the matter be investigated for possible breaches of the law.

On the $2 million flag, Roberts said:

1) the winning bid was one million dollars more than the losing one

2) the confirmation letter (of the award) to the "fortunate" company was given five days before the contract was awarded. ("I am sure Prophetess Pena would be proud of that company. They are so good, they write an acceptance five days before they win..Amazing!," Roberts quipped).

"To add salt to the wound," he said, "the projects administrator of the Sport Company stated that the person who signed the letter of award had no authority to bind the company.

"Mr Speaker, you think the story end there? Of course not," he said. Roberts said the winning bid of $2 million was based on two hundred cubic metres of concrete to be utilised in the foundation. "You know how many cubic metres of concrete they actually utilised, Mr Speaker? Thirty cubic metres- 15 per cent of the estimated amount," he said. He said the company estimated the butt???? size to be 20 by 20 but the butt size turned out to be 10 by 10. The estimate also included driving six piles to a depth of 40 feet each. "Mr Speaker guess what? No piles. Small butt, no piles," he said, to the roar of laughter. He added with some mischief, "So no Preparation H".

Roberts said although the compensation packages of the Executive Chairman and the Executive Director included a monthly transportation allowance, "these goodly gentlemen aided and abetted by the former Minister of Sport and Youth Affairs, accepted their transportation allowances while leasing two BMW X 5's for themselves at a whopping $18,000 plus VAT per month per SUV or in other words $40,000 per month, while cyclists could not get six track suits and Daren Ganga was denied funding to feed poor children at this cricket clinic".

Roberts said on the Caribbean Games which never actually came off, the former PNM Cabinet gave the company the responsibility of upgrading sporting facilities to the sum of $55 million. Of the $55 million of works, $30 million or 54 per cent were awarded to contractors without the use of a tendering process. "They went about their business on single quotation. In other words, somebody calls a friend and says "Ay,..send me a quote". And they were given it and paid. There were 123 such transactions associated with the Caribbean Games, he said.

Roberts said there were a further 129 transactions based on sole selective tender by the Sports Company, each over $100,000 totally $57 million by the Company. "This is a baby Calder (Hart)," he said. "Yet in the other place we have an Independent Senator stating to this Government that we should not dwell on the past," he noted.

Roberts said on a contract involving the roof of the Hasely Crawford Stadium, the auditors of the Ministry of Finance have concluded that "there was collusion between the contractor and the Sport Company".The roof "grew" from 2,055 square metres to 3,140 square metres and the additional cost of 264,000 was "speedily approved" by the ex-chairman of the Sports Company, he said.

Roberts said the irony of all this was that "while all this was going on- no invitation to tender, no evaluation process, questionable award of contracts, changing scope of works, ghost roofs and no Tenders Committee- the Sports Company employed a procurement specialist at $16,800 a month and a procurement consultant at $35,000. "$51,000 a month in procurement expertise and they get nothing right!"



State to blame for worker’s death

http://www.newsday.co.tt/news/0,125013.html
By Andre Bagoo Sunday, August 1 2010


ON AUGUST 2, 2008, Ramnath Bissoo was sitting at the lever controls of a Hiab truck at his worksite. He was aiding the dismantling – by the Ministry of Works and Transport – of a 160-foot Bailey bridge which straddled the Caroni River.

Things appeared to be going well. Following instructions, he drove the truck onto the bridge. But at 3 pm, workers removed one final bolt from the structure and it collapsed, snapping near the middle. Bissoo, 43, was pinned by the bridge. The lever controls punctured his chest: his clothes and flesh gave way to piercing metal. By 5 pm, the district medical officer pronounced him dead. Grey clouds gathered, rain fell, and the muddy, opaque waters of the Caroni River swelled.

The worksite accident which claimed Bissoo’s life almost exactly two years ago made the headlines in every daily newspaper. Amidst public uproar, the then Prime Minister, Patrick Manning, pledged a swift investigation into the incident, as did his Works and Transport Minister, Colm Imbert, whose ministry had overseen the bridge dismantling exercise. But despite the completion of several reports – by state agencies, by a Government ministry and by a special inquiry set up under the Office of the Prime Minister – the PNM administration failed to make public any findings in relation to Bissoo’s death.

Now, one day before the two-year anniversary of the incident, Sunday Newsday publishes the findings of one investigation into the incident; findings which place responsibility for the bridge’s collapse – and Bissoo’s death – squarely in the hands of the Ministry of Works and Transport (MOWT) which was then headed by Imbert, as well as other Government agencies at the time.

A confidential Occupational Safety and Health Authority (OSHA) report, dated August 22, 2008, which drew upon accounts given by staff at the MOWT and which was in the possession of the State for almost two years as the PNM Government remained silent on the causes of the accident, found that the MOWT failed to comply with safety practices and gave instructions to dismantle the bridge on a flawed, untested methodology. Additionally, the report noted that contract documents issued by the Central Tenders Board failed to have adequate safety provisions and that nobody involved in the exercise had proper training for it.

The findings – that the State was guilty of unsafe practices at the worksite – come amidst what some have described as an alarming trend of increased workplace accidents. According to official statistics not released to the public but obtained by Sunday Newsday, worksite accidents throughout the country have more than doubled, from a recorded 448 in 2000 to 1065 in 2008. Worksite accident fatalities, like Bissoo’s, have increased, averaging six a year.

On August 2, 2008, Bissoo, a father of two employed by S Jagmohan and Sons Limited, was not supposed to be at the site of the dismantling of the Caroni Bailey bridge. He was involved in another project at another site and received instructions – apparently at short notice – to operate the Hiab truck during the dismantling exercise.

Bissoo had nine years experience as a truck driver. But tellingly, he was originally employed as a water-truck driver. His employers said he had undocumented competence in operating a Hiab truck and was assigned to be the truck’s driver and hydraulic arm operator.

At two o’clock on that Saturday in 2008, as rain clouds gathered at the site of the bridge, Bissoo was instructed by a MOWT official to drive the Nissan Truck onto the bridge in order to remove large iron panels from across the bottom of the same bridge. He complied. The panels were placed on the truck.

At the same time, another truck was also on the southern side of the bridge, as other workers dismantled crucial bolts that held the panels of the bridge together and placed those same bolts onto the second truck. Thus, all the weight remained on the bridge, despite the decrease in structural integrity brought on by the exercise. For a while, despite the precarious arrangement, things progressed smoothly. But one last bolt refused to budge.

According to the OSHA report, the bolt, on the north-western side of the bridge, gave trouble: “it was very difficult to dislodge.” Shortly before 3 pm it was finally removed. But then, the entire bridge collapsed like a deadly pack of cards.

“The bridge collapsed at approximately 60 feet from the northern side, buckling to the west,” OSHA found. “This occurred shortly after the last bolt positioned at ten feet from the north – connecting the outer panel to the transom on the western side – was removed.

“At the time of the collapse, Bissoo was in the process of supporting the first twenty feet of panels on the north western side with the truck crane while the workers were removing the last bolt up to a distance of 70 feet on the bridge.

“The bridge collapsed at approximately 60 feet from the northern side, causing the truck to skid forward and to the western side of the collapsed bridge, pinning Bissoo between the truck crane lever controls and the western inner panel of the bridge. The chest of Bissoo was punctured by the lever controls and he was pronounced dead at approximately 5pm.”

OSHA investigators provided a minute analysis of the methodology used by the MOWT to dismantle the bridge – a method which was not subject to a standard risk assessment; was untested and apparently not suited to the model of Bailey bridge being dismantled. OSHA concluded that this method developed by the MOWT directly caused the accident.

“The direct cause of the accident was the reduced capacity and excessive stress induced on the bridge by the removal of key structural elements at the northern section of the bridge. The method of dismantling used by the MOWT was developed by MOWT Bridges Engineers and was never used on double panel Bailey bridges prior to the accident.”

“The method used resulted in the structural integrity of the bridge being weakened as a result of 70 feet of panels on the eastern and western side being unbolted from the transoms and the Z braces on both sides also being removed. Additionally, the weight of the panels was left on the bridge as they were not removed immediately after being unbolted and two trucks with bridge parts on their tray were left on the weakened bridge.”

Other factors which OSHA said contributed to the accident, included: “the lack of a safe system of work such as a risk assessment or method statement.”

“This was not done for the dismantling project at the time of the accident or for similar projects in the past. The procedure used for Bailey bridge assembly and dismantling was not documented and a pre-task safety briefing with all workers involved in the project (a standard practice) was not done. Additionally, there was no sequence of activities documented or used for dismantling of the double panel Bailey bridge.”

Of note to OSHA was the fact that nobody involved in the dismantling exercise for the double Bailey bridge, supervised by MOWT officials, appeared to be properly trained for the task: “most of the workers on the dismantling project had no prior training in single panel Bailey bridge assembly or dismantling and none of the workers, including the persons in charge, had training in double panel Bailey bridge assembly or dismantling. None of the workers on the dismantling project, including the Bridges Supervisor, Bridges Engineer and Chief Bridges Engineer, had prior experience in dismantling a 160-foot double Bailey bridge.”

These findings were in contrast to a release, issued by the MOWT one day after the incident which claimed: “preliminary reports indicate that the crew employed to dismantle this bridge has been trained to do so by a British firm, and further, approximately 50 bridges of a similar nature have been dismantled without a single incident to date.”

This was, perhaps, one example of a misleading statement amidst a sea of subterfuge and evasion over the incident which would unfold over years under the PNM. Despite promises, no report into the incident was ever released.

Finally, OSHA also lamented the fact that Bissoo’s employers had been issued a contract, dated June 26, 2008, to do work on an “as when required basis” yet, “the contract documents issued by the Central Tenders Board and the MOWT to S Jagmoham and Sons Limited did not outline any safety and health issues or execution plan. Additionally, the invoice (order) from MOWT to S. Jagmohan and Sons Limited did not make a request for an operator with required competence needed to operate the hiab and work on the dismantling project.”

There have been no OSHA charges in relation to the incident, probably because of the legal hitches which snared OSHA’s early days of operation, sources said this month. Now, under the provisions of the OSH Act, any charges would be statute-barred because too much time has passed.

To date, it is unclear whether lessons are being learnt from accidents like the one that killed Bissoo. Such accidents are normally subject to confidential OSHA and Government reports which are rarely made public.

In fact, mere months after Bissoo’s death, another worker, Rohan Maharaj, died at a Bailey bridge at Macoya after a ten-wheeler truck, en route to collect aggregate, crashed into the bridge. At a press briefing at the Prime Minister’s Residence and Diplomatic Centre on November 5, 2009, Imbert called on Maharaj’s estate to pay the State $500,000 in damages for damage done to the bridge.

“The poor driver is no longer with us but in law, the owner of the truck is liable,” Imbert, now an Opposition MP, said then. In contrast, the State is yet to pay damages for the death of Bissoo.

Bissoo would have been 45 this year had he lived. His family, still reeling from his death and the failure of the State to account for it, declined to be interviewed for this story.

But for them, and for workers all over the country who are placed at risk, the fatal tragedy – suppressed and silenced by the State for so long – will not stop flowing.

pugboy
TunerGod
Posts: 25289
Joined: September 6th, 2003, 6:18 pm

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby pugboy » August 1st, 2010, 12:33 pm

osha is probably as teethless as the ema

User avatar
UML
Trying to catch PATCH AND VEGA
Posts: 6577
Joined: April 9th, 2007, 11:08 pm

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby UML » August 1st, 2010, 12:44 pm

LETTERS LINK PM, HART TO CHURCH
http://www.newsday.co.tt/news/0,120828.html

By Andre Bagoo Sunday, May 16 2010


CORRESPONDENCE released by Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar yesterday, which disclose apparent links between the construction of a church at the Heights of Guanapo and Udecott, make references to the Prime Minister’s Residence and Diplomatic Centre in St Ann’s and raise questions over a possible direct connection between Prime Minister Patrick Manning and the project.

The documents make reference to someone referred to as “the PM” and also show that the Town and Country Planning Division granted final approval for the church on April 16, the same day Manning announced the May 24 date of the General Election.

The documents include:

•a plan which appears to be for the church prepared by the Architectural Design and Research Institute of Tongi University (Group) Co Limited, which builds upon previous designs by locals, lists the client for the project as Udecott, the contractor as SCG International (Trinidad and Tobago) Limited and which describes the project as an “outdoor stage project of Prime Minister House”;

•a letter dated May 2, 2006 and addressed to former Udecott chairman Calder Hart in which the project’s one-time architect Stephen Mendes advises that changes had to be made to the designs for the Lighthouse of Our Lord Jesus Christ church “as a result of recent PM’s requests”. This e-mailed letter, attached to a letter dated February 26, 2010 to Hart, also calls for changes “due to the recent changes called for by the PM”;

•correspondence showing that an undated application – submitted by persons unknown – was made to the Town and Country Planning Division for the project in Mendes’ name without his consent, even after he left the project; and

•a notice from Town and Country Planning disclosing that final approval for the project was granted on April 16, 2010, the very day that Manning, by fax, announced the date of the General Election.

Additionally, the documents appear to paint a picture of a nest of interconnections between persons surrounding the church and throw some light on the role played by the woman known as Reverend Juliana Pena, who is said to be a spiritual adviser to Manning and whose name appears on the church’s headstone.

At a press conference at the Office of the Opposition Leader on Charles Street, Port-of-Spain, Persad-Bissessar yesterday queried whether the description of the project in one plan as an “outdoor stage project” of the Prime Minister’s Residence raises the question of whether funds allocated for the construction of the $250 million Prime Minister’s Residence and Diplomatic Centre, built by Udecott, were used to construct the church, which is said to cost $30 million. She noted that while an outdoor stage was eventually built at the Prime Minister’s Residence and Diplomatic Centre, it was clear in her view that the plans referred to are for the church at Guanapo and not an annex to the Prime Minister’s Residence.

Pointing to plans, drawings and photographs she had taken and had planned to use during her contribution in a motion of no-confidence on April 9 which was thwarted by Manning’s dissolution of Parliament on April 8, Persad-Bissessar said, “I wish to remind all members of the media here and the general public by extension that this is a very serious matter which suggests (misconduct) and the abuse of State funds and lands by (high office) of this country for personal gain.”

“This outdoor stage project was not built, at least not at the St Ann’s location of the Prime Minister’s house. Instead, another outdoor stage building was constructed there by the same Shanghai Construction Group, at a cost of $10 million in 2009.”

“I have here, photographs taken a little over a month ago of the building on the site at Cemetary Street, Heights of Guanapo, Arima, the site of the Church of the Light House of the Lord Jesus Christ,” she said. “I also had both drawings and photographs analysed and it was confirmed that the building described in the plans done by Architectural Design and Research Institute of Tongi University (Group) Co Ltd is exactly the same as the building on the...site of the church.”

A copy of the plan for the “outdoor stage project of Prime Minister House” provided to the media discloses plans for a 500-seat “main sanctuary”, a “portico entry” and several inner rooms, including one identified as a “holy place”. The document has Chinese and English writing and does not appear to have a date.

In his letter to Hart dated February 26, 2010, Mendes explains how he came to be involved in the project.

“I am writing this letter to you for the purposes of clarifying my role and position on this project,” he wrote to Hart, former chairman of Home Mortgage Bank. “Sometime in November 2005, after completing a meeting with you at your Home Mortgage Bank offices, you asked me to meet with a lady who required my assistance. You then introduced me to a Reverend Juliana Pena, following which you departed the meeting leaving me to face an impassioned plea from this lady, to assist her in respect of preparing a design for the church to be situated close to Arima. She was extremely persuasive and after some consideration I agreed to help her prepare a design on a pro-bono basis, as a charitable donation to her church, as she had requested I do.”

In the letter, written two days after a release was issued by Udecott denying involvement in the project, Mendes asks Hart to direct all correspondence sent to him on the project to Pena as Mendes was by that time no longer involved in the project.

The picture painted by the documents are at odds with statements made by Udecott and by Minister of Finance Karen Nunez-Tesheira in Parliament on the project.

In a press release dated February 24, 2010, issued by Udecott’s corporate communications unit, the company said, “Udecott refutes (sic) spurious allegations which were carried in the local media, that the corporation is involved in the construction of a church in the Heights of Guanapo. The church being constructed at the Heights of Guanapo is not a Udecott project.”

The release continued, “there has never been any contract between Udecott and any party, for design, engineering and construction works for the project in question. Udecott also states for the record that it has not received any directive from Government to build or develop a church, nor has it been contracted by any party to carry out design or construction works on a church in the Heights of Guanapo.”

Calling the media reports “mischievous allegations”, Udecott added that it “categorically denies erroneous reports that it hired two local firms to do designs and engineering works related to the construction of the church mentioned.” Contacted yesterday Udecott executive chairman Jearlean John said she could not “assist” on the issue of whether Udecott had any involvement in the project. Asked if she could say conclusively if any personnel from Udecott ever had any involvement with the construction of any building at the Heights of Guanapo, she said, “Not that I know of. I have no information on that. I have seen nothing like that to say that that is so.” Pressed further on whether she ever saw plans, she said, “I will prefer not to answer any more questions. I cannot assist you on that. I was recently appointed to Udecott. I can say no, I have not seen any documents like that.” Asked if in relation to the Prime Minister’s Residence and Diplomatic Centre she ever saw reference to an outdoor stage project, she said, “I have not looked at the plans for the Prime Minister’s house. This building is one that is already constructed.” She once more denied that the church was officially listed as a Udecott project. John replaced Hart after he resigned amidst a scandal which tied his family to a firm awarded $368 million in Udecott contracts. The entire board also later resigned after the findings of the Uff Commission of Inquiry, amidst a police probe of Hart.

In Parliament on March 19, during debate of an Opposition motion on the issue of the church, which had first been raised in Parliament by then Chaguanas West MP Jack Warner, Finance Minister Karen Nunez-Tesheira fell short of a complete denial of Udecott involvement in the project. Instead, she failed to address this issue and denied Udecott’s involvement “in terms of financial arrangements”.

“Clarification was sought as to whether there was a relationship between Udecott, NIPDEC (formerly chaired by Hart) and the Shanghai Construction Company in the construction of the Lighthouse of the Lord Jesus Christ Church in terms of financial arrangements,” she said. “The answer is no.” She noted that Udecott and Nipdec had returned negative answers to the query and that the permanent secretary of her ministry was written. “The Ministry of Finance, Budget Division has never released resources to meet any expenditure related to the construction of the church or facility.” Attorney General John Jeremie, at a press conference on March 11, said he did not “see the need” to investigate the project.

In Parliament on February 27, Manning, in a 53-minute speech which was billed as being on the topic of “church and state relations”, failed to deny links to the church. Instead, he said, “I want to point out from the very onset that the church is not being built with State funds, that the building constructed does not belong to the Prime Minister, that the church is owned by the Lighthouse of the Lord Jesus Christ, that neither the Prime Minister nor any member of the Government gave any instruction to Udecott regarding the construction of the church.”

He alleged discrimination of the Full Gospel faith. Yesterday, Persad-Bissessar said that is not her aim in raising the Guanapo church issue.

“I remain now and always committed to the freedom of speech, freedom of worship, of all my brethren, in every church, mosque, temple or home. I am willing to defend that freedom with my life,” she said. She said she has written the Acting Commissioner of Police James Philbert, Director of Public Prosecutions Roger Gaspard and the Integrity Commission calling for probes into the project and the Prime Minister.2nd May 2006



Mr. Calder Hart

The Chairman

UdeCott

c/o The Home Mortgage Bank

Eric Williams Finance Building

Independence Square

PORT OF SPAIN



Dear Sir:



RE: CHURCH - LIGHTHOUSE OF JESUS CHRIST



I now enclose some the architectural/engineering drawings that have been prepared to date. I should point out:



1.The structural drawings developed to date are not in accordance with the recent changes made to the architectural drawings as a result of recent PM’s requests. Additionally, they need to be developed in far greater detail.

2.Additionally the consultants need to develop and finalize their general arrangement drawings due to the recent changes called for by the PM, including those relating to the residential component appended to the Church.

3.You must also secure the services of a M&E engineer. I would like you in this regard to make a personal request to ENCO, (Cavallo Sebastien), as you have done with Tony Farrell in the past.



I cannot see the construction of the job starting within the next 2-3 months, as all the engineering (both structural and M&E) drawings must be completed prior to start of construction. An early start would assume that building approvals will be waived.



Land, topo and soil surveys must also be carried out.



Finally, my recommendation is that once the general arrangement architectural and engineering drawings have been completed, a contract should be let to a general contractor on a turnkey or design build basis. This should help to speed up the completion of construction.



I can talk to you further on this matter.



DESIGN COLLABORATIVE ASSOCIATES LTD



Stephen Mendes







TOWN AND COUNTRY PLANNING DIVISION

MINISTRY OF PLANNING HOUSING AND THE ENVIRONMENT

Level 2 Tunapuna Administrative Complex, Eastern Main Road, Tunapuna



Phone: 663-2726



Date: 10th February 2010



REF: T3G: 1959/2009



Light House of the Lord Jesus Christ

c/o Stephen Mendez

1A-6A Ellerslie Plaza,

Maraval



Dear Sir,



In connection with your application for Planning Permission to develop land at Cemetery Road, Guanapo, Arima, namely the erection of a building for institutional purposes, on a site stated to be 1.5580ha in area, dated 23.12.2009 and submitted 29.12.2009, and since amended on 27.01.2010 certain defects have been identified in the documents submitted, as a result of which the processing of your application cannot be completed.



Your application is therefore returned to you undetermined, so that these defects can be rectified.



DEFECTS/OMISSIONS



1. Your application is unclear.



The information submitted on your application form and survey drawings, vary from that stated in the Cabinet Minute No. 2542 of September 30, 2005, relevant to the proposed site.



2. Your application is incomplete.



(I) The site of the proposed development is State Lands. You are required to provide a copy of the letter of agreement from the Commissioner of State Lands in respect of the lease of a parcel of State land comprising 0.3 hectare know as Lot 104, Heights of Guanapo, Arima.



(ii) You are required to provide a complete, scaled site plan showing the position of the proposed building(s) on the land and the distances from the face of the external walls of the building(s) or other means of structural support at ground level to all site boundaries.



(iii) You are required to provide a schedule of accommodation showing the names and areas (sizes) of the rooms within the building(s).



T3G: 1959/2009

2



If you wish to discuss any of these matters you may call at the above address on any Wednesday between 8.30 a.m. and 3.30 p.m. or at some pre-arranged time. You may ask to see Mr. A. Kirk.



Please bring this document with you.



Yours faithfully



for Director

Town and Country Planning Division

AK/sr/fr





TOWN AND COUNTRY PLANNING DIVISION

Level 2 Tunapuna Administrative Complex, Eastern Main Road, Tunapuna



Phone: 663-2726



Date: 19th February 2010



REF: T3G: 1959/2009



Light House of the Lord Jesus Christ

c/o Stephen Mendez

1A-6A Ellerslie Plaza,

Maraval



Dear Sir,



RE: Collection of Returned Plans - T3G 1959/09.



Further to our telephone conversation on 11/02/2010 regarding the subject application and for which you were to make arrangements for the collection of copies of plans submitted; I am to advise that the Division’s response is herewith enclosed.



It is customary when an application is returned undetermined that the copies of the plans are returned to the applicant in the mail. However, given the size of the plans the Division is unable to do so in this instance. You are again kindly requested to collect the plans at the above- mentioned address.



Yours Faithfully,



Ancil Kirk





Stephen Mendes

No. 7 Marine Villas

Westmoorings



26th February 2010



PRIVATE AND CONFIDENTIAL



Mr. Calder Hart

C/o UdeCott

38-40 Sackville Street

PORT OF SPAIN



Dear Calder,



Re: Church at Guanapo



I am writing this letter to you for the purposes of clarifying my role and position on this project.



Sometime in November 2005, after completing a meeting with you at your Home Mortgage Bank offices, you asked me to meet with a lady who required my assistance. You then introduced me to a Reverend Juliana Pena, following which you departed the meeting leaving me to face an impassioned plea from this lady, to assist her in respect of preparing a design for a Church to situated on a site close to Arima. She was extremely persuasive and after some consideration I agreed to help her prepare a design on a pro-bona basis, as a charitable donation to her church, as she had requested I do.



As I do not provide structural nor mechanical and electrical services, I recommended that these services would need to be provided by other firms. In this context, you arranged with CEP to provide their services and you suggested I contact ENCO, which I did. Unfortunately, for reasons unknown to me, the Structural Engineer was later not prepared to fully complete his drawings and indeed I too did not have sufficient time to prepare all the Construction documents due to my other work commitments.



I had previously recommended to you by email dated 2nd May, 2006 to which was attached a letter of the same date (see copy enclosed) that in the circumstances, where General Arrangement or Preliminary Drawings were available, a Contractor would need to be engaged on a “turn key” or “Design/Build” basis. In a further meeting I reiterated this, prior to your arranging for a Contractor to be given the drawings, pointing out that the Contractor would be required to complete the Structural drawings in particular, as I had little or no influence over the Structural Engineer who was only prepared to forward “Preliminary” drawings. It was on this basis that I recommended that a construction contract be awarded. Our preliminary drawings were only therefore submitted for the guidance of a “Design/Build” Contractor who would then assume the responsibility of both the Design and the Construction .



On handing over the drawings my involvement therefore came to an end, particularly as I had been unable to get in touch with the Reverend Pena. At that stage I had provided all the help that I could on a pro-bono basis.



Later, in early February 2010, I received a telephone call from an Officer at the Town and Country Planning Division (TCPD) requesting some information in respect of an application which I myself had not submitted to them and after contacting your office, who forwarded this information to me, I passed this and some additional information they required on them.



Subsequent to this, on the 22nd February 2010, I received a letter from the TCDP indicating that the application submitted to them was being returned ‘undetermined’ and that copies of the plans would need to be collected by the Applicant.



Bearing in mind that I am not the Applicant, and the information TCDP require relates substantially to matters which I am unable to answer, I am forwarding this to you to either answer their queries or alternatively forward same to the Reverend Pena.



Please contact me if you have any queries.



Yours sincerely

Stephen Mendes





March 18, 2010



Town & Country Planning Division

Level 2,

Tunapuna Government Complex

Eastern Main

TUNAPUNA



Attention: Mr. Ancil Kirk. Senior Planner



Dear Sir:



RE: YOUR REF. T3G: 1959/2009



I am in receipt of your letter dated 19th February 2010 addressed to the Light House of the Lord Jesus Christ, c/o Stephen Mendes enclosing an undetermined application of the same date and address.



Soon after receiving the above, I also received a telephone call from the Director of the Town & Country Planning Division, in which I explained to her that I am not the applicant or agent in respect of this application, nor any longer the consultant on this project.



Please in future direct all enquiries to the applicant or owner.



Yours faithfully

Stephen Mendes



cc: Cheryl Ann Haynes - Director, TCPD

User avatar
RASC
TriniTuner 24-7
Posts: 8338
Joined: February 6th, 2004, 11:00 am

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby RASC » August 1st, 2010, 12:51 pm

*yawn* The PP is too weak to make anyone important see jail time. They won't be able to prove a thing. It's all allegations.
We're still waiting for anyone to be charged in the former regimes so called corruption.

:|

User avatar
UML
Trying to catch PATCH AND VEGA
Posts: 6577
Joined: April 9th, 2007, 11:08 pm

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby UML » August 1st, 2010, 1:09 pm

you comparing 7 years of nothing to 2 months?!!

User avatar
RASC
TriniTuner 24-7
Posts: 8338
Joined: February 6th, 2004, 11:00 am

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby RASC » August 1st, 2010, 2:24 pm

UML wrote:you comparing 7 years of nothing to 2 months?!!


Are you implying that the country was stagnant for 7 years?
How is that even possible UML :?

User avatar
RASC
TriniTuner 24-7
Posts: 8338
Joined: February 6th, 2004, 11:00 am

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby RASC » August 1st, 2010, 2:33 pm

Trying to have a normal political conversation with those people is almost impossible as they almost always turn it into a personal thing.

We'll see.

I await UML's response.

User avatar
Monk BANzai
3NE 2NR Moderator
Posts: 18710
Joined: April 19th, 2003, 6:46 pm
Location: 2 Laws of 2NR. 1. You can't turn a hoe into a housewife. 2. The Streets are Undefeated.

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby Monk BANzai » August 1st, 2010, 4:14 pm

pioneer wrote:<insert pios is an pnmite here>



nah...i take that position long time....


BTW...does Kamla give you tingly feelings too? just look at her!!!!!

i find Kamla is to Jack what Christine was to Patos.....and Oma was to Panday..(thais why Panday was meh boy....Oma was ALWAYS he number ONE!!!)

:evilbat:

User avatar
Sky
punchin NOS
Posts: 4121
Joined: September 1st, 2006, 10:30 pm
Location: BRRAAAPP!!!

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby Sky » August 1st, 2010, 4:39 pm

slick wrote:Looks like Patrick Manning will be spending some quality time behind bars.

Oh how the mighty have fallen :lol: :lol: :lol:


Image

Like Panday spend time?

User avatar
buzz
Riding on 17's
Posts: 1439
Joined: November 23rd, 2007, 1:21 pm
Location: FL studio 9 mofos !!1!

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby buzz » August 1st, 2010, 5:14 pm

now now you three


stop the toating

User avatar
buzz
Riding on 17's
Posts: 1439
Joined: November 23rd, 2007, 1:21 pm
Location: FL studio 9 mofos !!1!

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby buzz » August 1st, 2010, 5:23 pm

i vote fuh meh race chack eh

User avatar
Cjruckus
Riding on 18's
Posts: 1809
Joined: July 16th, 2005, 11:59 pm
Location: Ⓐ▼▲ Ⓐ▼▲

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby Cjruckus » August 1st, 2010, 5:31 pm

What about Jack Warner Son recently buying an Asphalt company?

User avatar
buzz
Riding on 17's
Posts: 1439
Joined: November 23rd, 2007, 1:21 pm
Location: FL studio 9 mofos !!1!

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby buzz » August 1st, 2010, 5:48 pm

an allyuh say tings eh getting done pffft

User avatar
Damien
punchin NOS
Posts: 3094
Joined: April 11th, 2007, 3:51 pm

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby Damien » August 1st, 2010, 6:05 pm

we time to eatahfood

User avatar
eliteauto
TriniTuner 24-7
Posts: 14016
Joined: March 10th, 2006, 1:36 am
Location: Love is progress, hate is expensive
Contact:

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby eliteauto » August 16th, 2010, 1:38 am

hope this guy manages the City Corporations money better than his personal affairs

http://guardian.co.tt/news/crime/2010/0 ... aintenance

User avatar
Damien
punchin NOS
Posts: 3094
Joined: April 11th, 2007, 3:51 pm

Re: *****The OFFICIAL Corruption Thread*****

Postby Damien » August 16th, 2010, 1:59 am

thats kinda guntaish

Advertisement

Return to “Ole talk and more Ole talk”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: Google [Bot], pugboy and 93 guests