Minister in the Ministry of Attorney General and Legal Affairs Stuart Young says Monday’s disclosure of civil action against former hosting minister Dr Roodal Moonilal, former Estate Management and Business Development Company Ltd (EMBD) CEO Gary Parmassar and five contractors is in no way a plan to distract the public from current issues facing the People’s National Movement (PNM) and Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi.
Shortly after the announcement was made by Young, Moonilal said he was being framed and accused Young and Al-Rawi of being architects of the matter he claimed was based on circumstantial and hearsay evidence. He it closely resembled the 2013 Emailgate messages, calling this one Emailgate 2.
But speaking with the T&T Guardian at the Parliament yesterday, Young said Moonilal is entitled to say anything he wants, but reiterated the matter was being investigated for the past 18 to 20 months and was “some of the best work that has ever gone to the courts.”
“We have been utilising the best in class international and local forensic personnel investigators and attorneys-at-law…I have absolutely no hesitation whatsoever in the matter proceeding to court and in the proper evidential hurdles being crossed at the appropriate times when the case is tried in court,” Young said.
“I have no fear that there would be any question of fake…none.”
Responding to Moonilal’s statement that no action has been taken against him as Government moves to recover some $203 million which was allegedly obtained through white-collar crime, Young said, “Action will be commenced against Moonilal and others and that remains the plan.”
At Monday’s press conference, Young identified the companies as TN Ramnauth and Company Ltd (TN Ramnauth), Mootilal Ramhit and Sons Contracting Ltd (Ramhit), Namalco Construction Services Ltd (Namalco), Fides Ltd (Fides) and Kall Company Ltd (Kallco), which was recently awarded the Churchill Roosevelt Highway extension to Manzanilla.
Young said it involved the award of 10 contracts in August 2015 to a “hand-picked” five contractors for the upgrade and rehabilitation of certain Caroni roads.