An apology is inadequate for a “cock and bull story” – Jagdeo, Goolsarran

Aug 12, 2016 News

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By Kiana Wilburg
After giving the nation what was essentially a “cock and bull story” on the drug bond fiasco, an apology from Public Health Minister, Dr. George Norton just wouldn’t cut it.
This is according to Opposition Leader, Bharrat Jagdeo and former Auditor General, Anand Goolsarran. Even though these two public figures have been extremely critical of each other in the media, they both shared the sentiments that a so-called apology which Norton is being asked by the Government to offer the citizenry for his misleading comments does not solve anything.
Both parties agreed that Norton and any other official involved in the “shady drug bond deal” must be held accountable.
In an interview with this newspaper yesterday, Jagdeo recalled that when the Minister was asked in the National Assembly to provide the details with respect to the location, the rental and certification of the controversial drug bond, he sought to make a mockery of the questions, which his colleagues on the government benches reacted to with mirth and loud laughter having found his explanations highly amusing, notwithstanding the fact that millions of taxpayers’ money was involved in the fiasco.
In addition to this, Jagdeo said that Parliament was advised by Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo that all the issues concerning the bond went to Cabinet for consideration and were fully discussed and approved.
He insisted that the Granger administration must take full responsibility for the Linden Holdings Inc. bond fiasco and must account to the nation and the National Assembly for its corrupt practices. The Opposition Leader stressed that the matter is therefore one of collective responsibility and not solely Norton’s.
The People’s Progressive Party (PPP) also said that it stands by its commitment that the Health Minister must go before the Privileges Committee and face the full brunt of the penalties.
The Opposition party also said that it rejects the mere call for an apology on Norton’s part by the Granger administration as disgusting and views it as an affront to the Nation.
Sharing his thoughts on the matter earlier in the day, Chartered Accountant, Anand Goolsarran expressed from the get go that Norton’s explanations to the National Assembly on the matter represent a full “cock and bull story” and stressed that in addition to Norton, officials from the Ministries of Health and Finance must also be held accountable.
It was on Monday that the Public Health Minister was grilled extensively by members of the Opposition over $25M which was taken from the Contingencies Fund. It was revealed the sum was used as part of a security deposit for a warehouse in Sussex Street owned by Linden Holdings Inc.
Getting this information out of the Public Health Minister was by no means any easy task. But in the process, the political opposition was able to show that Dr. Norton’s statements were just not adding up.
The Opposition was able to reveal that Dr. Norton avoided the tendering process for the warehouse contract. But the Public Health Minister sought to defend the use of sole sourcing a contractor, by stating that the Ministry of Health and the Georgetown Public Hospital were in a hurry to find space to store drugs and other medical supplies. He insisted that it was an “emergency.”
Lo and behold, when checks were made at the Sussex Street location of the bond, not a single medical item was being stored there. In fact, the bond was still under construction.
Additionally, Dr. Norton told the House that in the interest of being cost effective, the administration had no choice but to go with Linden Holding Incorporated, as opposed to New GPC. He claimed that Linden Holding Inc. was only going to cost the government $12.5M in rental fees per month while New GPC was charging $19.2M. New GPC subsequently submitted a statement to the media which showed that Dr. Norton’s statements were far from the truth.
The company made it clear that it never charged a rental fee of $19.2M. In fact, it offered its warehouse for the past decade, free of charge.
Furthermore, the Public Health Minister failed to answer questions as to who are the principles of the Linden Holding Inc., its date of registration here, who signed the contract with the company on Government’s behalf and when it was signed. Even after these questions were repeated numerous times, he insisted that those details were not available at the time.
Also, Dr. Norton was asked to tell the nation why the Diamond storage facility was not being used to hold the drugs and other medical supplies. This too, he failed to answer in a straightforward manner. Instead, he said that Government hopes it would not have to use the warehouse belonging to the Linden Holding Inc. for too long.
What also shocked members of the Opposition was the failure of the Minister of Public Health to commit to presenting the bond contract in the National Assembly. Norton told the House that while Government would be interested in doing so, the disclosure of the contract would be dependent on the other party. He made this comment in spite of the fact that his Government had stated on numerous occasions that contracts should be made public, with the exception of those that deal with national security.
Another area on which the Public Health Minister was found producing mixed stories, was when the Opposition Parliamentarians asked him to say if the bond that was procured met international standards.
Norton told the House that it complies with the World Health Organization and Pan American Health Organization standards. But when challenged to bring the relevant certificates from the said organizations to the House in order to substantiate his claim, he changed his story and said it was the Ministry of Health that certified the safety of the bond.

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