Trinidad opposition to file motion regarding closure of oil refinery

Opposition Leader Kamala Persad Bissessar Tuesday said that she intends filing a motion in Parliament to get the Trinidad and Tobago government to debate the decision to shut down the oil refinery of the state-owned oil company, PETROTRIN with the loss of hundreds of jobs.

Persad Bissessar, who led a coalition People’s Partnership government during the period 2010-15, said that her administration “would never have shut down the refinery.

“We had no intention of shutting down the refinery,” she told reports, adding that between the period 2011-15, PETROTRIN had paid TT$20 billion in taxes.

Persad Bissessar said that she was prepared to re-file the motion, if no date is set during the current sitting of the Parliament for “the hearing of that motion.

“You can run but you cannot hide. We will refile it in the new session,” she said, adding that the main opposition United National Congress (UNC) had taken note that the action by the government “threatens to throw our nation, by his (Prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley) punitive, clueless, incompetence, spiteful regime….

“What they are doing will throw our country into throes of social, economic and general destabilisation. Mr Rowley is dealing with this company as a company crisis but PETROTRIN is a metaphor for three years of non-performance and crisis management without thought, without a care for workers and the future of our country,” Persad Bissessar told reporters.

Prime Minister Rowley announced on Sunday that his administration is prepared to give the first option to the Oilfield Workers Trade Union (OWTU) to acquire the refining assets of the company, after it had decided to accept the recommendations of the board of directors to shut down the oil refinery operations.

“The decision to close the refinery was taken after detailed analysis and deep introspection. This is not a decision that was made lightly or easily. Options were explored and reviewed. We sent the board back on a number of occasions to consider different scenarios and possibilities. At every step the effect on workers and their families and the communities that rely on refinery operations was considered,” Rowley said.

The union has since rejected the offer and said it was merely a ‘ruse” for the government to sell the refinery to a preferred buyer.

“We have always said that the plan is to sell the people’s asset, the refinery, and it came out quite clearly last night in this sort of a ruse telling the union that we are the first option to buy the refinery,” OWTU President Ancel Roget said.

Rowley said that approximately 1, 700 permanent workers will be affected in the refining and marketing division of the company, while in exploration and production, employment levels are to be reduced from 1700 workers to approximately 800 persons.

He recalled that in January 2017, he had warned the nation about the financial situation existing at PETROTRIN and the need to deal with the situation.

“I reminded you that there is a US$850 million bond that is coming due for payment in the form of a single payment in August 2019 and another of almost US$700 million that would be due soon after,” Rowley said, adding that the future of the company “has been the subject of much negative speculation for the past several months but inevitably we must come to the time of decision making as we are forced to abandon the procrastination and finger pointing which have only served to worsen the eventual outcome”.

Persad Bissessar told reporters that the government had been very secretive regarding PETROTRIN and asked ‘who seeks to benefit, why can’t the government not come clean on what they are doing with the patrimony of citizens?”

“We demand that you call elections now,” she added.

Persad Bissessar said the motion is intended to “force the government to come out of the secrecy and be transparent as to what’s happening.

“We can ask the questions and the public has the right to know,” she said accusing the government of not engaging the public on the issues surrounding the oil company.

“It is never too late, the public has a right to know when you are dealing with people’s business, PETROTRIN is the people’s business. I will file the motion in Parliament and that motion will allow us to debate this matter…to force the government “.
Meanwhile, a statement from the Office of the Prime Minister on Tuesday said that Rowley will meet with trade union officials on Thursday.

The union leaders had on Monday presented a letter to his office requesting a meeting to discuss the PETROTRIN situation.

Trade union here have already indicated they intend for their members to stay away from work on Friday to reflect on the closure of the oil refinery and its effect on the country.

One thought on “Trinidad opposition to file motion regarding closure of oil refinery

  1. Government should not close the refinery down. Try and come to a mutual agreement with the people. Dont sell our business out, keep out business in Trinidad. Government need to find solution for the people. You are there to solve problem not to benefit yourself. Please dont shut the refinery down. We are better than that.

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