Businessman JACK WARNER

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Page 2 ISSUE 156 Friday 13th MAY, 2016 If I were the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, I would have definitely employed a more transparent medium in the selection of Government Ministers. After looking at the selections made during the last administration, 2010 - 2015, and the current appointments made since September 7, 2015, it is clear that eligibility based simply on the will of the Prime Minister is not sufficient. The question I keep asking myself is whether the appointments made, offer any value to the nation as a whole and this question becomes even more relevant at a time when our country is going through a period of structural adjustment. During Kamla Persad- Bissessar’s administration, it was clear that the catalyst behind the selection of Ministers was not based on competence or management capabilities. The base for appointments was to provide a sense of comfort to the Prime Minister, one that assured her that she could have counted on the support of her Members of Parliament. This was critical for her because with a coalition government it is easy for a partner or even an elected MP to change the balance of power in the Parliament. So the 2010 – 2015 Cabinet emerged as the largest ever in the history of local politics because almost every MP had to be given a ministerial portfolio especially MPs who contested on the Congress of the People (COP) ticket. What makes this method even more vexatious is the fact that ministries had to be invented in order to keep MPs happy. One such example was the Ministry of National Diversity and Social Integration. IF I WERE THE PRIME MINISTER OF T&T It is a nomenclature that seems oxymoronic in nature, abstract in concept and void of any definitive purpose. However, this had to be done in order to keep the then MP for Arima Rodger Samuel loyal to the Partnership. At a time when the PP’s stock was depleting as two MPs resigned, one was fired, and a threat from Samuel that indicated his unhappiness became real, only a Ministerial portfolio for Samuel would reduce his discontent. Therefore, a Ministry had to be created. What value did it bring to the people of Trinidad and Tobago no one knows and no one will ever know. Only Kamla and the PP benefitted because such a move saved them the embarrassment of probably another resignation. So selecting MPs who are subject matter experts on the portfolio of their Ministries clearly has to be the way to go. A close examination of the current Ministerial appointments provides merit for such an approach. One cannot argue against the brilliance of Colm Imbert especially in the field of engineering and now his analysis of law seems to be sharp and on point to the average layman. However, if I were the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, I would never have appointed Colm Imbert as my Minister of Finance. Fair enough that within the Ministry there exists financial intelligence resources from which he can draw but the leader of a Ministry should possess the kind of competence that provides comfort to our citizens that our Minister knows what he is doing and does not have to subject himself to the opinion of his minions. There would be… NO QUICK PICK IN SELECTING GOVERNMENT MINISTERS A weekly column by JACK WARNER Within the PNM and the country at large, too many persons have defined themselves in the field of economics, business, and finance. There are others who have written volumes on the economic recovery of economies undergoing structural adjustment yet these were overlooked. And one cannot help but feel that the increased arrogance that is on display every time Colm Imbert is on his feet is nothing more Dr. FUAD KHAN…a subject Arima RODGER SAMUEL… matter expert a big joke than a defence mechanism used as a strategy when confronted with subject matters which make him uncomfortable. It is the same kind of behaviour one sees coming from the Ministry of Health. One cannot argue about TERRANCE DEYALSINGH…what does he know about health? Terrence Deyalsingh’s management competence but what does our good Minister know about health. It seems as though every time Dr. Fuad Khan opens his mouth in response to Deyalsingh that the brilliance of Deyalsingh diminishes. This is so because, on matters of health, Khan is a subject matter expert. Therefore, the arrogant response given by Deyalsingh on the issue of abortion was nothing more than a defence mechanism for a topic with which he is unfamiliar. I would find it extremely difficult appointing a Minister simply on the basis that s/he is an elected MP. At a time, when gas and oil prices are at an all-time low and they continue to drop the national community must ask the question whether Nicole Oliverre is the best fit for the Minister of Energy? Having worked in Petrotrin is insufficient. Having people of expertise around her is inadequate. Can she successfully bring ideas relating to hydrocarbon development and other energy resources that would be of benefit to our nation? It is the same way I felt when Clifton De Coteau was given the portfolio of Gender and Emmanuel George National Security. It is this ad hoc way of appointing ministers that is keeping us back because it seems ministers are really on the job appointees who are being paid subject matter expert salaries and are offering very little to national development. If I were the Prime Minister of Trinidad & Tobago, my MPs would be assigned to develop their constituency and grow the party base. Fifteen million dollars annually would be provided for all MPs as an emergency fund to deal with traumatic situations in their constituencies and this fund would be managed by a Permanent Secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister so as to ensure that proper Public Service procedures and regulations are followed. However, when it comes to Government, we need to reduce our Cabinet and focus on key ministries to which we assign subject matter experts to lead and develop our country. We cannot put someone with a Ph.D. in Chemistry to head a community development ministry; that is madness. So MPs when contesting elections should not have an unreasonable expectation of heading a Ministry. Their job is to manage their constituency and to ensure that the Government stays in power while the role of Ministers would be to provide the necessary tools to assist MPs in the development of their constituencies. This has to be the most COLM IMBERT…brilliant, but not as my Finance Minister prudent approach and had this been the path chosen by our leaders we would not have been in the position where after eight months our construction industry is virtually at a standstill. If I were the Prime Minister, an engineer would have headed my Ministry of Works and Transport instead of a lawyer and the country would not have been in the crisis it is in today. Let me hasten to add, however, that this is no indictment on the present Minister of Works & Transport. Anthony Garcia in the Ministry of Education is a classic example of how the appointment of subject matter experts works for the benefit of citizens. Therefore, if I were the Prime Minister of Trinidad & Tobago, this would have been my approach as I seek to advance my country.
ISSUE 156 Friday 13th MAY, 2016 Page 3 FCB CASHED BOGUS CHEQUE - dated April 31 OUR COVER STORY BY INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER AZAD ALI Businessman and former PP government minister Jack Warner is suing Frist Citizen Bank (FCB) for $10 million for cashing close to $3 million in bogus cheques and attempting to recover $1.2 million in unpaid overdraft fees from him as well as possession of the 26-acre Centre of Excellence, Macoyea in a lawsuit filed by the bank in the Port of Spain High Court. The Centre of Excellence and a property in Crown Point, Tobago were both used by Warner as security for the overdraft facility. The matter came up before Justice Frank Rampersad recently and he gave both parties deadlines for filing evidence in the case and the matter was adjourned to June 6, 2016. Incredibly FCB cashed one of 36 false cheques dated April 31,2010 in the name of Shivanad Bhagwandass when the calendar month carries only 30 days. Warner had brought to the attention of FCB Limited that the 36 cheques drawn on his account totalling $1,940,385,00 were honoured by the bank. All the cheques which carried the signature of Warner was forged by one of his employees. Warner said FCB failed to detect the forgeries and honoured the cheques contrary to the obligations imposed on FCB by the law as well as good banking practice. Two persons, one an employee, are currently before the court on fraud charges relating to the bogus cheques. Warner is claiming that FCB may quite be posing a probable threat to the safety and security of every person who has an account at this State-owned institution. He noted that once again the bank has breached the confidentiality principle and yet FCB is going to publicly deny that someone else and not the bank leaked to the media private information between one of its customers and itself. This is a frightening situation when one thinks that a bank has the power to ensure that the lead story across the media focuses on one of its customers. What is even more frightening is that within a matter of six months the COP-controlled FCB has accomplished the feat twice against two high-ranking officials who are on opposing sides of the last administration. The Chairman of FCB is NAR and COP sympathiser Anthony Smart and its Deputy Chairman is the COP’s former Chairman, Joseph “Who is your Leader” Toney. In fact, the entire Board of the FCB today is the very same Board that was appointed by the former PP government. So yes, it is political and the Government should lead the charge to clean-up the FCB house before others become victims to the indiscretion of FCB. A financial institution is a place where one expects the privacy of one’s business, the savings of one’s wealth, the relationship of one’s financial transactions to remain the secret between your banker and you. The concern of such a breach assumes that the bank may be in conspiracy with some others to rob you of your hard earned cash accumulated over a period of time. To think that such a thing could happen is not alien in our society. There have been instances in the commissioning of a kidnapping crime where the perpetrators were able to tell the victims from whom money has extorted the sum of their balance in the bank down to the very last cent. In other cases, victims were told of the deposits they made, when it was done, where it was done and how much was deposited. So when one sees a breach of confidentiality at a bank a flag must be raised since such a bank and in this case, FCB seems to be putting at risk its customers and clients because of its indiscretion. It was only a few months ago that the Minister of Planning and Sustainable Development, Camille Robinson-Regis, in a fit of anger, closed the accounts she held at the FCB. It was just a few months ago that the Prime Minister in support of his Cabinet colleague raised concerns over a matter of confidentiality at this “august” bank. Not only was the quantum of Camille Robinson- Regis’ transaction placed in the public space but also the official conversation relating to the disclosure of funds and this clearly seemed to be an attempt to bring the Minister into disrepute. Her story dominated prime time news for almost one week and as the credibility of the bank took a beating the story waned. When one would have thought that FCB would have learnt from its lessons, once again it has attempted to discredit and to bring into odium a client who is clearly perceived as an enemy to the last administration. Jack Warner being sued by FCB bank is not news but the implications that Jack Warner cannot pay his bills or has decided not to pay his bills is news.......... both local and international. What is clearly dishonest though is that FCB who seems to be the slave of some master other than the present one has refused to place into the public domain the real story as both FCB and Warner are aware. Some political piper is paying FCB and they are playing his or her tune and probably the time has come for an extensive audit of this bank for the public to determine whether it has been the vehicle for money laundering or not. The time has come for us to find out what kinds of deposits were made by members of the last administration in this bank for us to understand whether the procedure for which others are now vilified were followed or not. Because all is not well with the FCB, the bank that paid its former General Manager over $11 million dollars to resign to pick up the post of Minister of Finance. Such a precedent is anathema in labour relations yet under the previous administration it happened. So there is something political about the FCB that is sinister at its worst and disturbing at its best. It is something so evil that citizens should fear enough to withdraw their business and seek a more favourable and secure financial sanctuary. FCB knew that Warner and they were in discussions concerning their indebtedness to him and the so-called overdraft facility. FCB should have known that one of the contentious matters related to the number of fraudulent cheques drawn on Warner’s account that FCB allowed handwriting expert Mr. Glen Parmassar to review. FCB is also aware that Parmassar advised the Fraud Squad that all 36 cheques drawn on Warner’s account were forgeries. FCB therefore knew that all 35 cheques, which were deemed fraudulent were cashed against Warner’s account in a sum close to $3 million dollars yet they only allowed Parmasar to Example of one of the 36 bogus cheques cashed by FCB review 12 of those cheques and arbitrarily decided that the sum of $700,000 is the amount to be indemnified to Warner - a sum which Warner quite rightly refused. FCB knew that over 100 charges were laid against a husband and wife who are the alleged perpetrators of the fraud against Warner so that is beyond question. And rather than do the honourable thing and follow best practice procedures in the banking industry, FCB chose to follow the wishes of God knows whom in an attempt to publicly shame Warner. Normal banking procedure relating to fraud requires the bank, once transactions are confirmed as fraudulent, to accept liability of the sum and the interest which ought to have accrued. But rather than do the honourable thing, FCB has chosen to engage in public hostility against Warner even though the very first Banking Code of Conduct to which they must sign semi-annually is customer confidentiality. But Sunshine is aware that FCB’s legal pursuit is the least of Warner’s worries; it is their lack of due diligence that is of more concern. When someone can walk into a bank and cash a cheque dated April 31st, a day that does not exist on any kind of calendar be it Julian, Gregorian, Malayalam, Bahia, Solar or Lunar then something is wrong with that bank. And while Warner has the means and the network to contest FCB’s arrogance and wrongdoing in a court of law, the fearless Sunshine is more concerned with the little man who may be limited and is forced to suffer the indignities meted out by FCB. Sunshine is also concerned with information on people’s accounts, which may threaten their lives and their safety. It is the opinion of Sunshine newspaper and that of many others in T&T that FCB is fast becoming a national security threat and one that we all must take seriously. The story of this socalled overdraft facility is frightening and will stun many when the facts are revealed in a court of law..........as they will since Warner has sued FCB for $10 million. Warner has already experienced much damage and much pain based on FCB’s allegations. His family has been harried and their anxiety levels have spiralled almost out of control but at the end of the day, the credibility of FCB will be no more as long as it continues to play the tune of its previous political pipers and attack innocent citizens who are perceived as enemies of the past administration.
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Businessman JACK WARNER

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