Tuesday, July 10 2012

click on pic to zoom in

Vishnu Dhanpaul ...

FORMER permanent secretary in the Ministry of Finance Vishnu Dhanpaul yesterday said he had no knowledge or recollection of an alleged assurance by former Finance Minister Karen Nunez-Tesheira that the Hindu Credit Union (HCU) would be provided with a $71 million loan.

On May 16, the inquiry heard evidence from former Commissioner for Cooperative Development Charles Mitchell who said in 2008 the Ministry of Finance called him to get information on the HCU because the HCU president Harry Harnarine was seeking a $71 million loan from the Ministry. But testifying at the Winsure Building, Richmond Street, Port-of-Spain, yesterday Dhanpaul said the Ministry of Finance never offered to give the HCU a loan or to “extend a line of credit” to the union.

Dhanpaul, currently an alternate executive director of the World Bank at Washington, was brought to testify at the inquiry on claims by Harnarine over meetings the HCU had with the Ministry in 2008.

Dhanpaul denied claims by Harnarine that the Ministry of Finance held meetings with Harnarine before July 17, 2008 and also denied that Ernst & Young was hand-picked to do an inquiry. Of a meeting on April 7, 2008, which Harnarine deposes to in his witness statement, Dhanpaul said, “I have no recollection of that.” Of a claim by Harnarine that Nunez-Tesheira got a note from the Prime Minister to handle the HCU situation, he said, “I have no knowledge of this note.”

He said while Nunez-Tesheira agreed to assist the HCU in principle, he was not aware of any promises for the disbursal of $48 million.

However, he did say the State was examining the possible purchase of real estate. But properties being offered were encumbers and Nunez-Tesheira came to the conclusion that Harnarine was being “less than forthright.”

Dhanpaul said in 2008, when the Ministry met with the HCU as it entered difficulties, no written records of the meetings were kept. Inquiry chairman Sir Anthony Colman asked whether the meetings were supposed to be “off-the-record”. The witness said they were not supposed to be.

“So they were not off the record, but there is no record,” Sir Anthony remarked. “That is a pretty bizarre way of conducting things isn’t it?”