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National Quarries (NQ) paid $2 million for two pieces of equipment, even though the cash-strapped State company thought it was getting only one.
Usually, such a two-for-the-price-of-one arrangement is a steal of deal, except the company did not benefit from any bargain.
One piece of equipment—an excavator— went to NQ, while the other—a crawler dozer—went to a worksite for Gopaul & Company.
And despite paying $2 million, about $831,402 of that sum remained unaccounted for in the transaction.
In June 2013, NQ paid $2 million (US$317,968.75) to secure the excavator and, unknown to the company, when it paid that sum to a Miami-based broker, Global Trade and Financing, a Caterpillar crawler dozer was also being acquired.
The dozer secured by NQ remained undeclared at the company and was in use by Gopaul & Company for its work at the Beetham Landfill for the Solid Waste Management Company Ltd (SWMCOL).
A Sunday Express investigation into allegations of financial impropriety and fraudulent deals at the State company has revealed someone at NQ submitted an inflated invoice for the acquisition of the excavator and, as a result, managed to secure the dozer which was put to use at Gopaul & Company.
Gopaul & Company came under scrutiny after Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, who is a personal friend of the company’s principals, Ralph and Maureen Gopaul, became their house guest in the lead-up to and after the May 2010 general election, shortly after which the company was the preferred bidder for a $40 million contract at State-owned National Petroleum Marketing Company Ltd (NP).
The Integrity Commission rejected a complaint by Opposition Senator Fitzgerald Hinds that Persad-Bissessar was in breach of the Integrity in Public Life Act for her stay at the Gopaul’s Tunapuna residence, and it also recently cleared NP of allegations of bid-rigging in the execution of the $40 million contract.
In 2011, Gopaul & Company set up a construction outfit—Raldon Construction—a combination of the names of Ralph and Donald Gopaul, two directors of the company.
Raldon’s address, as listed in the registry, is Watts Street, St Augustine, which is the address of Gopaul & Company.
Raldon has been a contractor at NQ since it was established. The Sunday Express obtained invoices and cheques paid to Raldon, which ranged from $250,000 to $500,000 a month, for its work out of Scott’s Quarry in Blanchisseuse.
Acquiring the excavator
On April 12, 2013, NQ’s corporate secretary, Wilma Owen, wrote to Scotiabank requesting the bank release US$317,968.75 (TT$2 million) via wire transfer to Global Trade and Financing for the purchase of a refurbished Volvo EC460 excavator.
That letter was cosigned by accountant Bevon Cook.
That wire transfer was subsequently halted.
But two weeks later, at the company’s board meeting on April 29 this year, that the NQ board confirmed a decision to acquire an excavator.
The board minutes, obtained by the Sunday Express, revealed that an earlier decision was taken at the board’s previous meeting on December 12, 2012, when it was agreed that the equipment would be acquired using the three quotes system.
Documents obtained by the Sunday Express indicate an invoice for the excavator was only sent by broker firm Global Trade and Financing to NQ on June 10 this year.
The invoice, signed by Luis Castillo, stated that the cost of the excavator, secured from ER Truck and Equipment, was US$295,781.25 (TT$1.86 million), a one-year service contract was US$22,187 (TT$139,778), with the total cost being US$317,968.75 (TT$2 million).
On June 17, the corporate secretary wrote a similar wire transfer letter to First Citizens, asking that it transfer the invoiced sum to Global Trade and Financing.
By June 26, NQ’s chief executive, Sandra Fernandez, wrote to Global Trade over an error after the bank wire-transferred US$427,968.75 (TT$2.6 million), an over-payment of US$110,000 (TT$693,000).
“Reference is being made to the purchase of one refurbished Volvo EC460 excavator. Please be advised that a total cost of the excavator is US$317,968.75,” she noted, asking that the outstanding sums be refunded to NQ’s current account at First Citizens.
On July 1, Miami-based ER Truck & Equipment made out an invoice to National Quarries chairman Mitra Ramkhelawan on behalf of NQ.
The invoice, numbered 389.3982, was for two pieces of equipment: a Volvo Hydraulic excavator EC460BLC valued at US$92,000 (TT$579,600) and a Caterpillar Crawler Dozer D8R Series valued at US$94,000 (TT$592,200), with a total price of US$186,000 (TT$1,171,800).
According to Sunday Express calculations, given that NQ had wire transferred US$317,968.65 but only paid US$186,000, there is an unaccounted sum of US$131,968.65 or TT$831,402. Further, the State company had clearly overpaid for an excavator valued at US$317,968.75 (TT$2 million), when invoices reveal it was only worth US$92,000 (TT$579,600).
Cheques acquired from NQ reveal separate sums were paid by the State company to cover the cost of shipping—a $109,158 cheque was made out to Seaboard Marine Ltd and signed by the corporate secretary and accountant, while a manager’s cheque by First Citizens was made to the Comptroller of Customs & Excise for $230,993.41.
Neither Castillo nor ER Truck & Equipment responded to Sunday Express e-mails requesting clarification on what NQ actually purchased for the sum spent.
Different shipping invoices
The Sunday Express obtained two bill of lading documents for the equipment—one from NQ, and another from sources at Customs & Excise. The bill of lading, which was generated by shipper Seaboard Marine Ltd, details the merchandise being shipped. It came through the port at Point Lisas.
The bill of lading document from NQ which bears the invoice number 6040520, indicates only one piece of equipment—the Volvo excavator, which was stamped with an arrival date of July 11, 2013. However, the equipment was given tags of 737938 and 737949.
The bill of lading document, obtained from Customs & Excise, which bears the exact invoice number 6040520, indicates the two pieces of equipment—the Volvo excavator and the Caterpillar dozer—were imported with the exact arrival date of July 11, 2013. Again, the equipment was given specific tags of 737938 and 737949.
The dozer and Gopaul & Company
The dozer was put to use by Gopaul & Company after it won a tender from SWMCOL for operatorship of equipment at the Beetham Landfill site for the period 2013-2016.
The Sunday Express obtained pictures of the dozer at the landfill in August.
However, the dozer had a transmission problem and was taken to Gopaul’s yard in St Augustine to be repaired.
The Sunday Express obtained a picture of the equipment when it was being repaired at Gopaul’s yard.
To corroborate that it was the same piece of equipment, the dozer bore the tag 737949, which was given a specific tag in the bill of lading document from Customs.
SWMCOL chairman Nalini Sooklal told the Sunday Express, via e- mail, the Beetham site supervisor indicated that Gopaul & Company did have an initial breakdown of equipment, which resulted in the use of a sub-contracted tractor from Ageis Ltd.
“As per the contract, this arrangement is allowed,” she noted.
The Sunday Express tried numerous times last week to contact Ralph or Donald Gopaul to comment, but was unsuccessful.
Ramkhelawan responds
Following a series of investigative reports into NQ and enquiries into the acquisition and location of equipment, the Sunday Express understands that the dozer was moved from Gopaul’s yard to work at Scott’s Quarry two weeks ago.
Ramkhelawan confirmed both pieces of equipment are now in NQ’s possession, but did not want to detail to the Sunday Express how NQ could now lay claim to the dozer when there was no official documentation of its acquisition.
Asked why the equipment was used by Gopaul & Company, Ramkhelawan said he was “not aware of that at all”, but did not commit an answer as to if the equipment was always in the possession of NQ.
When asked about his relationship with the Gopauls, Ramkhelawan simply replied: “They are no family of mine.”
Asked specifically if he had commercial interests with Ryan Gopaul, who manages Raldon, he declined to answer.
Ryan Gopaul did not return calls or texts to his cellphone by the Sunday Express.
Pressed about the picture of the dozer at Gopaul’s yard, he responded: “I don’t know about that photo, it was never there.”
When the Sunday Express explained the discrepancies in the bill of lading documents, Ramkhelawan’s position was that the document from NQ was “false”, while the one from Customs would be correct.
“I think the one from Customs is the correct one and that should be the one in NQ,” he said.
The Sunday Express persisted: “Why was the invoice from Global for one piece of equipment?”
Ramkhelawan: “When you put your article, you will see the response.”
Asked by the Sunday Express to walk through the process of acquisition, Ramkhelawan responded: “I can talk you through it, but I don’t know if I should respond because you will be bending my words and change what I say.”
Sunday Express: “I am recording you so I guarantee you I can’t change your words.”
Ramkhelawan: “What you record is not what you put in the newspapers.”
Sunday Express: “I am basing the questions based on the documents I have before me.”
Ramkhelawan: “And you will determine my answer however you want and that’s not fair.”
Sunday Express: “Mr Ramkhelawan, are you going to respond to it or not?”
Ramkhelawan: “I will not respond. After you put your article out, I will respond then.”
The Sunday Express understands that the NQ board was unaware of the existence of the dozer until a board meeting last Thursday in preparation for a meeting with Energy Minister Kevin Ramnarine last Friday to discuss allegations raised in newspaper reports.
Ramnarine has asked Ramkhelawan and the NQ board to respond to all allegations.
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krisso310 wrote:corruption corruption... rel madness with license office south.. dey rel dis-organized
zoom rader wrote:krisso310 wrote:corruption corruption... rel madness with license office south.. dey rel dis-organized
How much change you pass to get your license?
COVER-UP
National Quarries CEO makes fraud report to cops
By Asha Javeed CCN Senior Multimedia Investigative Journalist
Story Created: Oct 10, 2013 at 10:16 PM ECT
Story Updated: Oct 11, 2013 at 12:41 AM ECT
National Quarries (NQ) chief executive Sandra Fernandez yesterday reported an alleged fraud cover up at the cash-strapped State enterprise to the Fraud Squad.
Fernandez has reported that senior officials have been covering up their tracks by forging letters which she took to the Fraud Squad yesterday.
The matter has already been reported by Fernandez to the Integrity Commission.
The Express understands that within the past week letters have been forged at NQ and submitted to the Ministry of Energy and the Ministry of Finance as certain officials in the State company attempt to cover up the acquisition of two pieces of equipment for $2 million.
The Express understands that as chief executive, Fernandez was asked to sign off on backdated letters, which sought to spin how the company acquired and utilised a second, unaccounted for piece of equipment.
In an exclusive story published in this week’s Sunday Express, it was revealed that NQ paid $2 million for an excavator and a bulldozer (called a dozer), even though it got only one. The excavator went to NQ but the bulldozer went to a worksite at Gopaul & Company.
The dozer had remained undeclared to NQ until the Express raised questions about the acquisition and location as part of an investigative series into allegations of financial impropriety and fraudulent deals at the State company.
The dozer, which had been temporarily housed at Gopaul’s St Augustine base after experiencing transmission problems at the Gopaul’s worksite in the Beetham Landfill, was subsequently moved to Scott’s Quarry three weeks ago.
Scott’s Quarry is owned by NQ.
NQ chairman Mitra Ramkhelawan had said he would address the allegations in the Sunday Express article but, to date, has not.
The board, which includes Satee Chillar, Shivanand Dubay, Gregory Nurse, Neil Joe Sirpu, Nassa Hosein, Perry Polar, Alban Scott and Varsha Sieurajsingh, was unaware of the dozer acquisition and unknowingly approved the forged letters submitted to the ministries.
The cover-up
The Express understands that a senior NQ official in collusion with another manager at the company produced a hand-written note, which was back-dated, for Fernandez to sign which would show that the dozer was in fact at NQ and under the stewardship of a contractor.
The note was dated June 18, 2013 and gave the contractor the rights to the dozer and NQ would deduct the cost of the equipment when invoices were submitted.
The note dated June 18, the Express understands, was drafted by the manager and presented to Fernandez to sign on October 2 but she refused to sign it.
Fernandez made a note at the back of the hand-written letter, which stated: “Received on or about 2nd of October 2013 from.... (name called). (Name called) gave her to pass to me to prepare letter...I never signed the letter,” with her signature.
The Express understands that a letter was typed and Fernandez’s signature photo-copied onto it and submitted to board members to indicate that approval was given by her to the contractor.
Contacted yesterday for comment, NQ’s operations manager Delicia Maharaj said NQ has a public relations individual and deferred all questions.
Ramkhelawan did not answer his cellphone.
The June 18 letter, the Express understands, prompted Fernandez to report the matter to the Fraud Squad yesterday.
The Express also obtained other documents handed over to the Fraud Squad, which were allegedly forged within the last week to support the narrative that the equipment had always been at work at NQ.
To marry the alleged forged letter, another letter dated June 17, 2013, was reportedly written by the contractor in collusion with the senior NQ official to confirm the arrangement for the bulldozer.
The letter was addressed to Fernandez and stated:
“I would like to thank you for the meeting today and would like to confirm the arrangements made for the purchase of a caterpillar D8R bulldozer from ER Truck and Equipment.
“National Quarries Company Limited would pay the freight and other charges for my company. These charges are to be deducted as discussed over four months. During this time, I would lower the rate from four hundred and seventy-five dollars ($475) per hour to four hundred ($400) per hour.”
The Express was not unable to contact the contractor at the number listed on the company’s letterhead nor did he respond to an e-mail sent to the company’s address, which was also listed on the letterhead.
Investigations by the Express have revealed that a note for the wire-transfer payment to the broker firm, Global Trade and Financing, was sent on June 17 and an invoice was made out by the Equipment Company on July 1.
Other documents, which are alleged to have been forged are the invoices, which were done by the contractor for the months of July and August but bore a NQ stamp of October 8 as having been received.
The sum invoiced is $25,530 for the month of July and $80,500 for the month of August with a tag: “Rental of Equipment for the period.”
All these documents were sent to the ministry as part of NQ’s defence for the acquisition of the equipment.
However, it did not address how the equipment came to work at Gopaul’s worksite at the Beetham Landfill or ended up in Gopaul’s yard for repairs.
The allegations:
1. That the prices of the equipment were inflated. The Volvo Hydraulic Excavator EC460BLC was valued at US$92,000 (TT$579,600) and a Caterpillar Crawler Dozer D8R Series valued at US$94,000 (TT$592,200) with a total price of US$186,000 (TT$1,171,800).
2. That NQ paid a broker firm, Global Trade and Financing, US$317,968.65($2 million) for only an excavator.
3. After three months, Global Trade and Financing had not repaid an erroneous over-payment of US$110,000 ($693,000) to NQ.
http://www.trinidadexpress.com/news/COV ... 22601.html
SUSPENDED
One day after reporting a corruption cover-up at National Quarries to the Fraud Squad, chairman acts on CEO
By Asha Javeed asha.javeed@trinidadexpress.com
Story Created: Oct 11, 2013 at 9:44 PM ECT
Story Updated: Oct 11, 2013 at 11:03 PM ECT
Chairman of National Quarries (NQ) Mitra Ramkhelawan has suspended the company’s chief executive, Sandra Fernandez.
Fernandez, who reported an alleged cover-up at the cash-strapped State company to the Fraud Squad on Port of Spain on Thursday, received a letter of suspension yesterday.
The Express understands the letter, which was written by the company’s secretary, Wilma Owen, and signed by Ramkhelawan, was delivered to her home in East Trinidad.
A copy was also sent to Energy Minister Kevin Ramnarine yesterday.
Ramnarine confirmed, in a telephone interview yesterday, he had received a copy of the letter and said it was signed by NQ’s chairman.
He said the reason Ramkhelawan gave for the suspension was that Fernandez’s qualifications for the position were being questioned.
Fernandez, who was identified for the position of chief executive by Ramkhelawan, has been NQ’s chief executive for the past two years.
NQ’s board of directors are Satee Chillar, Shivanand Dubay, Gregory Nurse, Neil Joe Sirpu, Nassa Hosein, Perry Polar, Alban Scott and Varsha Sieurajsingh.
Several of them, if not all, were in the dark over the suspension yesterday.
Contacted by the Express, several of them were unaware of any suspension.
The Express was told if the chairman wanted to suspend the CEO, a decision would have had to be ratified by the board of directors. “Although he is the chairman, he is not an executive chairman where he would have more control. He would need to make his case before the board,” one source explained.
“As far as I am aware, the CEO has not been suspended. There is no reason for it. I will have to look into it,” Dubay told the Express yesterday.
Asked whether it had to do with Fernandez’s decision to refer a matter to the Fraud Squad, Dubay declined to go into details until he was fully apprised of the matter by NQ’s chairman.
Others declined to comment on the record until after an emergency board meeting, which was scheduled for 5 p.m. yesterday.
On Thursday, Fernandez reported that senior officials at the company have been covering up their tracks by forging letters, which they submitted to the Ministry of Energy and the Ministry of Finance, in an attempt to cover up the acquisition of two pieces of equipment for $2 million.
Fernandez was allegedly asked to sign off on backdated letters, which sought to spin how the company acquired and utilised a second, unaccounted-for piece of equipment.
The Express has reported that NQ paid $2 million for an excavator and a bulldozer (called a dozer), even though it got only one. The excavator went to NQ, but the bulldozer went to a work site at Gopaul & Company.
In an interview with the Express on September 17 at NQ’s offices in Arouca, Ramkhelawan had justified the selection of Fernandez as the company’s chief executive.
Fernandez worked at Caura Hospital before her present job.
She admitted she was on vacation from duties at the hospital when she began work at NQ as a “CEO consultant”.
“What is happening is I was on vacation, and you’re on vacation you can consult. Nothing is wrong with consultation. If you are on vacation, nothing is wrong with that,” she said.
Ramkhelawan said her qualification for the job was her accounting background.
“She’s made more money than any CEO in the history of this company. The qualification is the bottom line, not idiots with PhDs who can’t do one thing. It’s the bottom line. Can you get the job done? Can you turn around the company? That is the qualification,” he said.
He said its union, the Union of Commercial and Industrial Workers, hamstrings the company.
“Trade unions are in the group of disgusting human beings in Trinidad and Tobago. We have put them in court. They struck illegally,” he said.
Ramkhelawan said at least 80 per cent of the employees at NQ were good people.
“The 20 per cent are lousy, low-grade, low-down people who are very unproductive and they are the ones in the unions,” he said,
Express: “Aren’t you concerned that statements like those can impact on morale?”
Ramkhelawan: “Serious?”
Express: “Aren’t you?”
Ramkhelawan: “No. Why? The truth? Why we must couch our words?”
“Unions are always upset. There are four classes of people who wreck this country. There are calypsonians—not Kitchener, Rose and Sparrow. You know the ones I am speaking about. Corrupt politicians before and after Johnny O’Halloran. Reckless newspaper reporters who would do anything for front page; and trade unions,” he said.
Several sources at NQ have voiced complaints to the Express that Ramkhelawan acted as an executive chairman, and not as a chairman of a board of directors.
In the September 17 interview, Ramkhelawan justified why he worked at the company every day, when a chairman’s job focused on governance issues at the company.
Ramkhelawan explained: “The company is bankrupt. The debt-to-equity ratio is two-to-one, it is fraught with corruption. Harvard University says the nonexecutive chairman should spend not less than 100 days. This company is fraught with numerous problems.”
He said as a chairman, he suffers the indignity of having at his disposal the “oldest, lousiest vehicle he has ever used”.
The Nissan Pathfinder, he said, has “tyres (that) are smooth like glass.”
“Normally in my area, I bend my head while I am in it. It’s a bit disgraceful,” he said.
He added, “how embarrassing it is, after 47 years, vagrants are sleeping right here. The footballers who come here nightly have to change their clothes in cars. Can we go on this way all the time?”
Hart continued, “everybody will be taken care of, nobody’s going to be displaced. They’re not going to lose anything, they’re going to gain.”
The director of Corporate Services at the Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA), Doodnath Bhola, solicited hundreds of thousands of dollars from contractors to assist with campaign financing in a failed attempt to secure victory for the United National Congress (UNC) in the Chaguanas West by-election.
Bhola is also chairman of Government Information Services Ltd (GISL).
Instructions detailing how the money was to be collected from the contractors all who are carrying out works on WASA’s pipe laying projects around the country were sent to 15 people, who are alleged to be senior WASA officials, in the form of two text messages from the cellular phone used by Bhola, the same telephone number on which the Sunday Express contacted him two Fridays ago.
Bhola is responsible for procurement and purchasing services at the State enterprise.
The text messages obtained by the Sunday Express were sent on July 1 and 22, 2013, just days before the July 29 Chaguanas West by-election which was won by Jack Warner, interim political leader of the Independent Liberal Party (ILP).
The July 1 text message sent from Bhola’s telephone number to the telephones of nine of the 15 senior WASA officials at 8.20 a.m. read: “I took 100k to the Boss this week for the campaign and he was real happy. This was from Brian Ali from INCORP. If you can do the same with assistance of (sic) people you know and trust the boss and party will be real glad.
“Bick organized something also. Let me know and I could make the arrangements. We have to do it next week.
When I resume duties on Tuesday I hope I can take you to the boss with resources for the campaign. You must give the name of the donor and Cell No for acknowledgement.”
The nine to whom the message was sent were Wendell, Ronald, Peter, Steve, Anand, Gerard, Ram, Ken and Ricky. Bhola was on leave from WASA from July 18 to 22 and resumed duties on July 23 as stated in the text message.
Company searches show Ali is the managing director of Incorp Investment Ltd in Sangre Grande.
Websites also list Ali as the managing director of Aaron’s Barbecue Hut located along the Eastern Main Road in Sangre Grande.
Ali could not be contacted for comment.
Sunday Express investigations further revealed that three weeks later on July 22 at 7.46 a.m., just six days before the July 29 by-election, another text message was sent from the same telephone number to 12 contacts listed as Mervyn, Dial, Steve, Ram, David, Ken, Peter, Wendell, Gerard, Ronald, Rick and Harrylal.
The message read: “Last call. Financial support for UNC campaign in Chaguanas (sic) West. So far Ronald has arranged contributions from Delta Construction, Monar and ABRI Contractors, I had arranged with INCORP, and Harrylal is taking down contributions from RJS and Veemul this evening to the boss. I will be arranging with NEDCOM and Moosais today. What are you doing if you have not done anything as yet D Bhola.”
Three hours later that same day at 10.45 a.m. another text message was issued from the same telephone number, this time to Ken which read: “Thanks Ken for getting Bens Transport to contribute.”
Dinash Ragoo is listed as the owner of that company.
When the Sunday Express contacted Bhola questioning in what capacity he collected funding to assist with campaign financing for the Chaguanas by-election he replied via text message: “I want to thank you so much for giving me the opportunity to explain my text messages on July 1 and July 22. I will be more than willing to respond.
However, I don’t remember clearly the details of the text messages. It will be greatly appreciated if you can forward those text messages to me so I know exactly what I am explaining.”
Bhola however changed his tune when the Sunday Express sent the text messages, and instead suggested that he would let the Information Technology (IT) department investigate them.
Bhola wrote: “I am shocked by what is alleged to have come from my phone. In addition most of the persons mentioned in the text don’t know about it. I wish to deny any of this happened and have requested our IT department to investigate these texts (sic) to determine what really happened. I will share with you the findings when they come at hand.”
Sunday Express investigations revealed that it was two Wednesdays ago that WASA’s management held an emergency meeting with several senior officials after word got out that the Sunday Express was in possession of information relating to the solicitation of funds.
Several attempts to get comments from chairman Indar Maharaj were unsuccessful as he did not respond to telephone calls or voice messages on the matter.
Line minister Ganga Singh also did not respond to text messages when questioned if he was aware that monies were collected from WASA contractors to assist with campaign financing for the Chaguanas by-election.
And when the Sunday Express approached Singh at the launch of the National Beverage Containers Cleanup at the Hyatt Regency (Trinidad) Hotel in Port of Spain last Monday asking him to comment on the issue, he said: “I cannot respond. I do not know the integrity of those text messages. That is my response.”
Leader of the Congress of the People (COP), Prakash Ramadhar, who has been lobbying for the implementation of campaign finance reform also did not respond to text messages on the matter.
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