By Alicia Chamely
MINISTER of Rural Development and Local Government Khadijah Ameen is striking back at former Minister of Works and Transport Rohan Sinanan, saying the “blame the United National Congress (UNC) card” has expired.
On Monday, Sinanan issued a media release defending his tenure as the line minister for URP, saying his administration found gross overspending and criminal activity were taking place at the programme from 2010 to 2015 under the former Kamla Persad-Bissessar UNC administration.
Responding swiftly to Sinanan’s statements, Ameen put out a subsequent statement saying, “It is evident Mr Sinanan has not yet received the memo—the “Blame UNC” card has officially expired.”
Ameen stated Sinanan’s statement was a ploy to avoid taking responsibility for the weak management and lack of oversight that was allowed to flourish under his tenure.
She accused Sinanan of practising political bias during his time as line minister, claiming, “UNC-led regional corporations were routinely denied fair access to workers and resources.”
Ameen stated, “URP contracts were often awarded to politically connected individuals without proper oversight, while qualified contractors were ignored. Procurement protocols were frequently bypassed, raising questions about the true purpose and beneficiaries of the programme.
She further refuted Sinanan’s claims that he reduced the programme expenditure, which Ameen said reduced spending does not equate improved performance.
Ameen expressed her views that, “the URP under the former administration became stagnant and ineffective—not because of limited funding, but because of a lack of leadership and the political will to reform.”
Addressing the totality of Sinanan’s statement, Ameen said, “Mr Sinanan’s weak attempt to deflect and revise the past cannot distract from what the population already knows: under the former administration, the URP lost its way. We were elected to fix it—and we will.”
