00:01$39.2 million has been allocated to finance filling of contract positions, upgrade of equipment at the National Coastal Surveillance
00:10Raider Centre,
00:11hosting the 2026 Independence Day Parade, purchase of uniforms for members of the Defence Force, and for repairs and maintenance
00:19of the four Air Guard helicopters, Mr. Speaker.
00:22A boost for national security with the injection of $39.2 million, and what stands out from that is Minister
00:29of Finance Dave Tancu's comment that repairs will be made to the Air Guard helicopters.
00:34But this may not be as simple as that. The issue of these Air Guard helicopters, groaned it for more
00:40than a decade, is a contentious one.
00:43Under the former UNC government's tenure, they had purchased four Augusta Westland helicopters to bolster the ability of the Trinidad
00:51and Tobago Air Guard.
00:52But in 2017, former Prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley said the government had decided it could not continue to fund
00:59the initiative due to the cost of maintaining the aircraft.
01:02Dr. Rowley said then they took a decision at the level of Cabinet that they were not in a position
01:07to pay $200 million to maintain the four Augusta helicopters for one year.
01:13Dr. Rowley said if they could not afford the helicopters, they would stay grounded.
01:17However, the effect of groaning those helicopters had a domino effect on the Trinidad and Tobago Air Guard.
01:23A source told this journalist in 2019 that of the four helicopters, two were un-serviceable while the other two
01:30are serviceable, but it will be a hefty cost to have them maintained.
01:33The source explained that the two, quote-unquote, serviceable Augusta helicopters that are in preservation mode will be maintained by
01:41the National Helicopter Services Limited, which has the contract to service them.
01:46The National Helicopter Services Limited was, however, unable to fulfill this mandate because it was also cash-strapped, and to
01:53get those helicopters operational again would cost millions.
01:56Former head of the National Operations Centre, Garvin Heria, was asked to give an insight on this latest development.
02:02Heria stated, open quote,
02:20I would strongly recommend the government seriously consider leasing fit-for-purpose platforms in the near term rather than waiting
02:27on a full procurement cycle so that air law enforcement capability can resume without unnecessary delay.
02:34Close quote.
02:35Heria said that this initiative must be thoroughly thought through, adding, open quote,
02:39What concerns me most is the absence, at least publicly, of a comprehensive strategy governing this initiative.
02:46Crew availability, pilot training, hangarage, sustained maintenance, pipelines, and technological integration are not afterthoughts.
02:54They are the pillars upon which operational success will stand or fall.
02:59Money without a strategy is not investment.
03:02It is expenditure.
03:03Close quote.
03:05The finance minister said that some $64.2 million was also allocated to the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service to
03:11assist in providing uniforms, rental of vehicles, etc.
03:15Mark Bessant, TV6 News.
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