Junior Finance Minister, Mariano Browne, is reported to have said:
“These are business transactions. You don’t conduct business decisions in public.” (Trinidad Guardian, 2008 March 11)
The transactions to which he was referring were those monetary ones involved in the puchasing of some jet or the other, by taxpayer-owned Caribbean Airlines (CA), from French airline manufacturer, Bombardier.
Apparently Mariano forgot who owns CA. Let's forgive him, this time, this one time only, okay?
Oh! By the way! Our forgiveness does not mean that, in my view, he need not to do these two things:
- Apologize to us, for his sarcasm; and
- Forthwith upon, if not before, apologizing, tender his resignation.
In the same article, it is reported that Bombardier Business Aircraft Public Relations Manager, Danielle Boboudreau, pooh-poohed the notion that the Bombardier Global XRS was gonna set us, taxpayers, back by U$63 million. According to Mamselle, the local news media overstated the price tag by some US$13 million, since the true cost was roughly about $US50 million.
Thus, her statement invites us to ignore that, just last week, Works and Transport Minister, Colm Imbert, took pains to point out that US$63 million of our money would be given to CA to purchase a U$50 million Bombardier Global XRS jet.
Mamselle Boboudreau or Minister Imbert must be taking us for boubous, or what? As far as were are concerned, whatever the price, the price is too much, since we don't need no damn private jet for no Prime Minister or anybody else to go traipsing up and down the place! The price of this cake is too high! Let its intended passengers eat bread by flying on regular commercial flights!
