UDeCOTT IS OWED $500 MILLION

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UDeCOTT, the State-owned company that manages the construction of projects for Government Ministries - is owed $500 million dollars by various entities.  The revelation came during a hearing of a Joint Select Committee of Parliament on Wednesday, but UDeCOTT's chairman told the Committee's chairman that he ought not use the word delinquent to describe the State entities owing UDeCOTT.  Juhel Browne reports.

Transcript

00:00 During Wednesday's public hearing of the Parliament's Public Accounts and Enterprises Committee,

00:04 its Chairman, Opposition Senator Wade Mark, wanted to know how much money is owed

00:09 to the state-owned Urban Development Corporation of Trinidad and Tobago Limited.

00:14 Remember, our committee is here to help Unicorn,

00:20 to improve your delivery of services to the people of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.

00:29 So tell us, tell this committee, what is the state of play with those receivables?

00:34 What is the size, value and quanta? Who owe you?

00:39 How much they owe you? And when you intend to collect them?

00:43 The committee was examining Unicorn's financial statements for the years 2016 to 2018.

00:50 Unicorn's Acting Chief Executive Officer, Burton Andre Hinkson, responded to Senator Mark's question.

00:57 For the period of 2016, 2017 and 2018, our receivables averaged $1 billion.

01:05 Since that date of 2018, we have been making concerted efforts to work with the Ministry of Finance

01:12 and also with our variant client ministries.

01:14 As you know, we work with basically every ministry that we have.

01:18 The Acting CEO said the company has been making concerted efforts to reduce its receivables,

01:24 including having meetings with client government ministries to clarify any queries.

01:29 And we have brought that figure significantly down.

01:33 As of the end of this current fiscal, that figure is about, roughly about half, $500 million.

01:43 Can you tell us what has happened between 2019 to 2023?

01:48 Has it been reduced or have you grown in terms of receivables?

01:54 Oh, sir. Just to clarify, that half a billion is as of the end of this current fiscal that just finished.

01:59 A reference to the government's 2022 to 2023 financial year, which ended on September 30th.

02:06 Senator Mark said Unicorn borrows hundreds of millions of dollars

02:10 before he posed a direct question to Unicorn's Chairman, Noel Garcia.

02:15 The leading culprits, the leading delinquents in this outstanding scenario would be who, Mr. Garcia?

02:26 Who would be the entities that are owing Unicorn half a billion dollars as we speak?

02:33 Mr. Garcia also explained that the reason Unicorn was unable to provide audited financial statements

02:39 from 2019 to 2022 was that in 2016, KPMG voluntarily withdrew its services from Unicorn and other state enterprises.

02:49 He said Unicorn then had to change auditors, which he recalled to be the firm, PKF.

02:55 For the accounts of 2019, we are expected to deliver that sometime towards the end of November.

03:10 For 2020, we are looking somewhere in January 2024. For 2021, we are looking at April 2024.

03:27 And for 2022, we are looking at July 2024.

03:34 Mr. Garcia said that is on the basis that Unicorn does not run into any unforeseen circumstances.

03:41 Jule Brown, TV6 News.

03:43 Fox26houston.com, and I'm

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