The Tribune

By KHRISNA VIRGIL

Tribune Staff Reporter

kvirgil@tribunemedia.net

CHAIRMAN of the Public Accounts Committee Hubert Chipman said summonses will be served on both Urban Renewal 2.0 Co-Chairs Algernon Allen and Cynthia “Mother” Pratt to appear before the committee within the next week in a bid to bring swift closure to a matter that has been severely delayed.

However, he said, it was unlikely that either co-chair would be interviewed before the month ends.

This is because Mr Chipman expects to leave the country on July 24 to attend the Commonwealth Parliamentary Associations (CPA) conference.

Following the conference, Mr Chipman said it is his intention to question Mr Allen and Mrs Pratt during the first week of August.

Prime Minister Perry Christie tabled Auditor General Terrance Bastian’s report into Urban Renewal and its Small Homes Repair programme on Wednesday giving the PAC the go-ahead to interview persons and send for people without interference.

The St Anne’s MP said: “I can tell you that the co-chairs won’t be interviewed before August. I have a CPA conference to go to and that is on the 24th (of July).

“The PAC will probably meet amongst ourselves next week to discuss, but realistically speaking I am thinking that they won’t be interviewed until the end of the first week in August.

“In the lead up to that, I will probably send out the summonses before I go to the CPA, those are my tentative plans.”

In April, Mr Bastian’s report was leaked to the press and sparked months of heated debate over the management of Urban Renewal and possible abuse of the programme.

Mr Chipman lashed out at the Christie administration for delaying tabling the report. He said the government has frustrated the PAC’s work and stifled its progress on other matters.

“The government was procrastinating. This report should have been tabled a long time ago and the PAC completed its work.

“We had the authority to summon both co-chairs the whole time. While I am happy that they tabled it, the serious delay actually frustrated the process.

“The PAC had several matters to look into on its agenda, however, it is unlikely that we will get to any of those matters.”

On Wednesday, Free National Movement Deputy Leader Peter Turnquest accused the government of delaying the process “to buy time to clean” Urban Renewal’s records.

Mr Turnquest is one of three opposition members on the PAC.

However, Urban Renewal Co-Chair Algernon Allen, dismissed the assertion, telling The Tribune the remarks were “scandalous and filth that could only come from an evil mind”.

Mr Allen went on to defend Urban Renewal as he insisted that regardless of what is uncovered as the PAC investigates, was done for the good of the poor who need relief.

The former FNM Cabinet minister said now that the report has been laid on the table he had no reservations over appearing before the PAC when called to do so.

After the report was leaked to the press, both co-chairs refused to appear before the PAC until the report was taken out of the scope of questioning, because the document had yet to be tabled in the House of Assembly.