By CLINT CHAN TACK Saturday, February 4 2012

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NEWSDAY IN THE HOUSE: This composite photo, shows at right, Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley reading from yesterday's edition of Newsday, during deba...

GOVERNMENT Chief Whip Dr Roodal Moonilal yesterday slammed the former People’s National Movement (PNM) government for arranging for the Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA) a US$110 million agreement with an Israeli company, on the eve of the May 24, 2010 general election.

Questioning whether any proper procurement policies were followed in that arrangement, Moonilal said this raises questions as to why the PNM would now seek to “jump onto the public procurement boat”, under the People’s Partnership coalition government.

Responding to a contribution made by Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley in the House of Representatives on a motion to approve the Water Improvement Order 2011, Moonilal said the PNM was out of place to question Government’s approach to public procurement when it entered into such a “nebulous agreement.”

Saying part of that arrangement involved the payment of US$25 million into an escrow account for Israeli company MMD, Moonilal claimed that only one party was supposed to have access to that account. However he said no money was ever paid into that account. Recalling that in 2006, then Prime Minister Patrick Manning described WASA as a “$27 billion headache”, Moonilal said this was the “monumental mess”the People’s Partnership inherited when it assumed office in 2010. Referring to Rowley’s allegations about Desalcott, Moonilal asked: “Who are these secret beneficiaries?”

Conceding that matters involving Desalcott are still before the police, Moonilal said as far as he was aware, “no one has been convicted of a criminal offence” in relation to those matters. He also said the order being proposed would add $150 million to WASA’s coffers every year. In moving the motion earlier in the sitting, Public Utilities Minister Emmanuel George said WASA stood to suffer a loss of $92 million in the purchase of water from Desalcott this year if the water improvement rate was not increased.

The rate currently stands at $4 per cubic metre while WASA has maintained a commercial rate of $3.50 per cubic metre since 1993. WASA currently pays a total rate of $7.50 per cubic metre. The motion proposes increasing the water improvement rate from $4 to $8.50 per cubic metre. When added to the current commercial rate of $3.50 per cubic metre, industries at the Point Lisas Industrial Estate will now pay WASA a new rate of $12 per cubic metre to purchase water from WASA which in turn buys water from Desalcott.