BASSETERRE, St. Kitts, Oct 20 2017 – The former manager of the Small Enterprise Assistance Fund (SEAF) Rosalyn Hazelle says she is pursuing legal options to get Prime Minister Dr. Timothy Harris to retract statements she said were aimed at sullying her “personal character and my professional reputation”.
Harri speaking at a news conference last week said that the SEAF was established by the previous Denzil Douglas administration as a pre-election programme “as an electioneering tool that was put in effect to win votes.
“We are hard-pressed to rationalise the need to pay persons already in the public sector hefty sums while they presided over this SEAF programme that was neither meeting the test of accountability nor transparency. We have difficulty with the payment to such public officials, as…Rosalyn Hazelle, who the record would show, earned EC$76, 000,” the Prime Minister said
But in a statement, Hazelle said that Harris is seeking to use her as a scapegoat to further his political agenda.
“The Honourable Prime Minister once again I think for the third time, has called my name either in press conference or in Parliament and has made false and misleading accusations. I have issued a statement that speaks to my denial of that and whatever the Prime Minister is trying to accuse me of,” she said.
Prime Minister Harris told reporters that millions of dollars had been squandered under the programme that issued loans of up to EC$50,000 to establish or enhance small business enterprises.
Hazelle said that she had handed the matter over to her attorneys. She is also calling on Prime Minister to do the “honourable thing” and retract his statement.
