UNC senator Jayanti Lutchmedial is calling on Foster Cummings to step down as Minister of Youth Development and National Service, following what she described as his failed attempt to silence and hinder her in the execution of her duties as an Opposition Senator.
In a statement, Lutchmedial said Cummings must do the honourable thing and step down as a Minister until the police complete their investigations into financial dealings involving state enterprises and his family companies.
She noted that “In the absence of this principled approach, he ought to be fired forthwith by the Prime Minister, who should take heed of todayโs judgement and recognize that the โcomparatively weakโ arguments raised by Cummings do nothing to quell the publicโs desire for transparency and accountability from elected officials.”
“Since I made public the documents disclosed to me by a whistleblower this government has continued to demonstrate that they are the embodiment of shameless hypocrisy.
๐ข๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ป๐ฒ ๐ต๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ ๐ฐ๐น๐ฎ๐ถ๐บ ๐๐ผ ๐ฏ๐ฒ ๐ฏ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ป๐ด๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐น๐ฒ๐ด๐ถ๐๐น๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐๐ผ ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ ๐๐ต๐ถ๐๐๐น๐ฒ๐ฏ๐น๐ผ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ ๐๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ผ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฟ๐๐๐ต๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ผ ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ๐ ๐๐ผ ๐บ๐๐๐๐น๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ ๐ฑ๐ถ๐๐ฐ๐๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐พ๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ป ๐ถ๐ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐บ๐ฒ๐ ๐๐ผ ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ถ๐ฟ ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐น๐ถ๐ป๐ด๐. ๐๐ ๐๐ฒ๐ฒ๐บ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ฏ๐น๐ผ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ต๐ถ๐๐๐น๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ป ๐ฎ๐ป๐๐ผ๐ป๐ฒ ๐ฏ๐๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฃ๐ก๐ ๐ถ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ถ๐ฟ ๐ฝ๐ผ๐น๐ถ๐ฐ๐.
Lutchmemdial said, “The TTPS has since confirmed that an investigation into financial dealings by 3 companies connected to Minster Cummings prompted them to make an application for a production order last year and that investigation is still ongoing. ”
She said the police have been quite vocal about their concern over the leak of the Special Branch report into Minister Cummingsโ activities but is yet to say what if anything was done with that report and whether any evidence was gathered based on the contents.
According to Lutchmedial, “They appear oblivious to the publicโs demand for greater priority to be placed on investigating wrongdoing by public officials.”
She added, “It is to be remembered that this special branch report came subsequent to a 2017 media report into land grabbing in the Couva area where persons complained to the media that a Senator was connected to the bulldozing of Caroni and HDC lands which they occupied for a number of years.
Was Mr Ray Connell ever interviewed? He along with another elderly gentleman spoke openly to the media about the involvement of โThe Senatorโ. Did the TTPS contact them and ask for a statement?”
“The then line Minister of HDC Randall Mitchell stated that there would be an investigation since the acts complained of were not carried out by the HDC and even went so far as to describe it as โa trespass against the HDCโ
Lutchmedial asked once again, “What happened to that HDC investigation and the subsequent Special Branch Report?
The HDC cannot to date say how one family was allowed to acquire 3 HDC properties in the Couva area, which can only be transferred with their consent. This seems wholly inconsistent with the mandate of this agency and in the absence of full disclosure the population is left to wonder about the level of nepotism that pervades state enterprises.
Added to that, the reports which have surfaced regarding financial transactions between other state enterprises like the MTS and companies linked to Minister Cummings raise a number of very pertinent questions regarding practices at state companies and a prominent Credit Union, the supervision and regulation of which falls within the portfolio of none other than Minister Foster Cummings!”
She said, “the Prime Minister is now making a habit of keeping persons in his Cabinet despite them having serious questions to answer with the police over financial transactions.
The defense of Foster Cummings and the deflection of these serious issues serves to further erode what little is left of public confidence in fairness, justice and democracy.”
Lutchmedial said she intends to continue her quest to expose any wrongdoing which may exist and exercise her right to freedom of political expression to the fullest extent in order to hold this government to account.
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