By Sue-Ann Wayow
OROPOUCHE East MP Dr Roodal Moonilal claims the reason why the Central Block of the Port of Spain General Hospital cannot be completed is because money is being pumped into the construction of Balisier House.
At the United National Congress (UNC) Monday Night Report, Dr Moonilal called on Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley to name all the large-scale contractors who he alleged were providing funding for the construction of the multi-million dollar People’s National Movement (PNM) headquarters that is in close proximity to the Central Block.
Speaking at Hillview College in Tunapuna, he said with the new contract awarded for the construction of the Central Block, the project’s duration was over and the building was far from completed.
Dr Moonilal said, “Contract expire, the money gone, building eh finish. Think of this. Contractor take money, I am not naming who take money because they have plenty contractor there, but you have to connect that to Balisier House. And tonight I ask, Keith Rowley answer the question…”
He paused to say that nothing was wrong with business companies or individuals giving donations to political parties because the law allowed for that.
Dr Moonilal added, “What is wrong is when you corruptly take money from state projects to fund political parties. That is wrong. And tonight I call on Keith Rowley to tell us whether the contractor at the Central Block or its related company is donor to Baliser House constructions.”
He said that Dr Rowley could not simply expect people to believe that finances for the construction came from solely from fund raisers.
“Large scale contractors got contracts and funding Balisier House and you know how they doing it? They routing the money through another contractor so you not paying Baliser House. The contractors are forced to make cheques to a particular contractor and that goes to its lead contractor who in turns fund Balisier House,” Dr Moonilal claimed.
He said, “That’s the scheme them fellas working on. That’s why the Central Block will never finish and all the money will done. That is what we facing today.”
Mentioning the contract previously awarded to Shanghai Construction Group that was terminated, Dr Moonilal said the UNC intended to find out the terms and condition of that contract.
The Urban Development Company of Trinidad and Tobago (UDeCOTT) heading by chairman Noel Garcia is responsible for the project.
Dr Moonilal showed documents revealing the terms and conditions of a contract for works to be completed by March 1, 2023 with local company Universal Structures.
He said, “If they could not finish that contract on time, they had to pay $50,000 a day for what is called delay… March 2023 gone. They ent finish. Fifty thousands dollars a day they must pay and up to a limit of 25% of the contract meaning $26 million more or less.
“Today we ask Noel Garcia and Keith Rowley, have you sought to implement the contractual obligations of Universal Structures by taking the $50,000 per day because… do you know they have not even completed 50% of the work? It was supposed to finish March 1st and all the money gone.”
Last year, Garcia was reported in the Newsday as saying the new block should be completely built and outfitted by about March 2024 with a new contractual arrangement with Universal Structures.
Package two consisted of the old block’s demolition and the erection of the shell of a new block, he said.
He also said then, the contractor was slightly ahead of schedule and that package two work was a month ahead of the March 2023, completion date.
For package three – the encasing and outfitting of the block, the tender closed on September 30, 2023 and that completion date on that package should be by the first quarter of 2024, Garcia said.
AZP News has sent question via WhatsApp on the claims of Dr Moonilal to Political Leader of the PNM and Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley, PRO of the party Minister of Rural Development and Local Government Faris Al-Rawi and chairman of UDeCott Noel Garcia and is awaiting responses.
