I wish to correct the erroneous impression which may arise from a statement in the Daily Express editorial of May 9, 2016 which states that in the “outrageous case of the One Alexandra Place, neither the PNM nor the former People’s Partnership has any moral advantage over the other.”
As Minister of Public Administration and Communications I, too, share the national outrage over the $47,813,544.78 wasted on the rental of a building that remained unoccupied for over five years that spanned the entirety of the previous administration. In fact, that figure is an understatement and represents rental charges alone.
The records would show that 90 per cent of that figure ($42.9 million) was spent during the period May 2010 and September 2015, so that it would be inaccurate to say that both administrations are to blame for this national travesty. Only $4.3 million of that sum, rent from December 2009 to May 2010 can reasonably be attributed to having been spent under the PNM.
The Government, under the previous administration, spent an additional $50 million to outfit the building bringing the total expenditure to $97.7 million on One Alexandra Place, although it still did not occupy it.
Having perused the records of the outrage that occurred, I am committed to ensuring that such wastage does not take place under my watch. I expect to get back to the national community in the very near future on this matter.
Maxie Cuffie
Minister of Public
Administration and
Communications