….until all legal processes are exhausted

President David Granger on Monday issued a Grant of Respite to the judgment levied on the Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan placing any punishment the latter faces, on hold.

The judgment given on June 24, 2019 by Justice Priya Sewnarine-Beharry states that the money owed to DIPCON engineering company, by the State, is to be paid on or before July 8, 2019.

Failing to do so, the Finance Minister will be liable to imprisonment for 21 days for criminal contempt of court by deliberately subverting the previous court order. Additionally, the order stipulates that a court cost of three million dollars is to be paid.

President Granger, using his executive powers vested onto him under Article 188(1)(b) of the Constitution, ordered that punishment be blocked.”I hereby grant to Winston Jordan, in his personal capacity and as the Honourable Minister of Finance and Member of Parliament, a respite of the execution of the punishment imposed on him until all appeals and remedies available to him and the State have been exhausted,” the president outlined in the document which was seen by this publication.

This matter stemmed from an inherited State debt of US$2,228,400.67 to the Trinidadian construction company, who after not receiving their payment for contracts completed for the former PPP administration, approached the court.Judgment was granted in their favour.

Online media entity, NewsSource, reported today that the Finance Minister complained that he did not know why he was facing punishment in his personal capacity for a decision of the Court against the state.

He explained also that the case dates back to the previous administration and a court matter with the Trinidadian construction company from more than a decade ago.