Attorney General Faris-Al Rawi says the Government will respond to the pre-action protocol letter sent by attorneys for former cane farmers who demonstrated outside the Office of the Prime Minister on Wednesday to demand outstanding payment of $75 million from the European Union (EU). He said the Government’s action would be with a view to bringing the parties together to resolve the matter.
Al-Rawi told yesterday’s post-Cabinet news conference the protest was an act of irresponsibility as the former PP government had five years to deal with the matter but did not. The former cane farmers went to the Office of the Prime Minister on Wednesday to present a 14-day ultimatum to pay an outstanding sum of money.
However, Al-Rawi said the facts of the matter must be determined and the Government was in the process of doing that. He said officials from four ministries would have to meet to advance the matter.
Finance Minister Colm Imbert, who also spoke at the briefing, said a claim by former planning and sustainable development minister Bhoe Tewarie that the money was allocated for the farmers last October were untrue.
Imbert said the funding was to be provided on the completion of certain conditions, which included 2,000 acres of former Caroni lands to be under agricultural production, an integrated water management system and the increase in local agricultural production by ten per cent. He said those conditions have not been proven to be met under the former regime.
Imbert said consequently the funds were not released. Education Minister Anthony Garcia said at the same news conference that Cabinet yesterday appointed a task force to review the Government Assistance for Tertiary Education (GATE) programme. The programme began in 2004. The task force will be chaired by Errol Syms, a management consultant.
Garcia also said the award ceremony for recipients of the President’s Award will be held at the Southern Campus of the National Academy for the Performing Arts on Tuesday. The President’s Medal Gold and Silver will be distributed to students who excelled in the 2015 CAPE and CSEC examinations.