By Sue-Ann Wayow

See you in court!

This is Minister of Public Utilities Barry Padarath challenge to former minister of Rural Development Faris Al-Rawi.

On Monday night, Padarath triumphantly raised a document dated August 11, 2025 as he listed the United National Congress (UNC) achievements since forming government after the April 28 general election.

He was speaking at the UNC Monday night report (First 100 Days) at the Couva South Multi-Purpose Hall, Camden Road, Couva.

Padarath addressing the issue of embattled state enterprise Community-Based Environmental Protection and Enhancement Programme (CEPEP) told Al-Rawi he had some advice for him.

“Move Satan, move!” Padarath said to Al-Rawi.

“We are in government now and let us pass. Let us do the job of the people!”

He said to supporters, “Tonight I can confirm to you… and Faris Al-Rawi put it in your pipe and smoke it… I can confirm to you that the Registrar and Marshal of the Supreme Court Judiciary of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago has indicated on today’s date at 2.38 pm…please note that a order to provide  documents to the Director of the Public Prosecutions was compiled on Friday 8 August.

Acknowledgement of receipt was received on the said day from the DPP’s Secretariat.”

Padarath said, “This means that the flawed perpetuated on CEPEP which caused it to extend over 300 contracts at a whooping cost of $1.4 billion without Cabinet approval will now be the subject of a criminal investigation.”

Padarath, now the line minister for CEPEP said that was proof that a thorough investigation was being done into troubled state enterprise and by the necessary law enforcers.

He then went on to outline the background to the CEPEP matter keeping Al-Rawi under fire.

Last Thursday, High Court Judge Margaret Mohammed ruled on litigation brought CEPEP by contractor Eastman Enterprises Limited, for the termination of his contract, in a second lawsuit.

Justice Mohammed upon hearing the case sided with CEPEP, who argued that Eastman was in breach of his contract’s dispute resolution clause, which required Eastman to seek mediation with CEPEP before litigation.

Further, Justice Mohammed found there was sufficient evidence of fraudulent deception in the extension of contracts and therefore ordered all filed case documents to be forwarded to Director of Public Prosecutions Roger Gaspard for his discretion.

It was alleged that board members of CEPEP were falsely made to believe that the extension of contracts had been signed off by cabinet, when it in fact had not.

Responding to the outcome of the case, Al-Rawi issued a statement on Thursday evening questioning as to why certain pieces of evidence were withheld from Justice Mohammed.

Al-Rawi addressed the issue of cabinet approvals for CEPEP contracts saying, a 2017 cabinet note from the Ministry of Finance that authorised CEPEP to terminate, suspend and hire contracts that was confirmed by former Finance Minister Colm Imbert.

However, Padarath said on Monday, “Al-Rawi is depending on a 2017 Cabinet note. I want to tell him, go and read the Cabinet minute. As a present to him, I will send him a copy of the Cabinet minute because it is not reflective of what the note is saying.”

He also claimed that the particular note would have instead sent home would have sent home over 7,000 workers of CEPEP in 2017.

Approximately 10,500 CEPEP workers were affected by the termination of their contractors on June 27 when government ceased all contracts.

Workers were entitled for one month’s payment “in lieu of notice,” enabling them to compensate their workers for the month of July.

Padarath had said CEPEP was being restructured details of which will be made known to the public at the appointed time.