By Sue-Ann Wayow
TRINIDAD and Tobago has been placed in a sticky situation not being allowed to pay cash for gas from the Dragon Gas Field.
Member of Parliament for Mayaro Rushton Paray is advising against all investments being placed in the Venezuelan field.
Paray, speaking at the United National Congress (UNC) Monday night forum in Debe said that while the sanction not to take gas from Venezuela issued by the US was lifted, more needed to be ironed out including payments.
Venezuelan President Nicholas Maduro has said his Government will not accept payment in any other form but cash saying it was “colonialism” that companies doing business with Venezuela must pay with food or products.
Minister of Energy and Energy Industries Stuart Young is currently leading a delegation in Venezuela to have discussions on the matter.
Paray said, “We could supply them with food and medicine even though we don’t have enough for our domestic distributions here today… No money must cross the table. Now, with such complicated permission, you would expect any sensible leader to first contact the Venezuelan President in Caracas.”
“You would think the T&T Prime Minister would get a pulse from President Maduro about his views on this controversial issue. That is what real leadership require,” he continued.
Instead of speaking with Venezuela, Prime Minister Dr Rowley instead held a press conference to boast that better times were coming, he said.
Paray said, “He (Maduro) said Venezuela is not prepared to accept this deal and that under these conditions, I don’t want no aloo and potato and onion, I want cash for my gas.”
He said, “This is exactly what we have been saying that while we support it, we cannot pin all our hopes on the Dragon gas deal. Our entire energy policy cannot be dependant on one gas deal with an unstable regime which is under US sanctions.”
