In a fiery address to Trinidad and Tobago’s Parliament during a vote to approve the Standing Finance Committee’s report, Attorney General John Jeremie launched a scathing attack on the prior People’s National Movement (PNM) administration, accusing it of wasting $1 million in public funds on a premature, extravagant opening ceremony for the Port of Spain General Hospital’s new Central Block back in March 2025.
Jeremie detailed that the event, which drew three-quarters of the former PNM cabinet, centered on unnecessary luxury spending that included cheese paste and champagne, even as the facility remained wholly unequipped to deliver even the most basic patient care. At the time of the high-profile opening, he explained, the Central Block only held a certificate of practical project completion—a designation that meant full operational readiness was still far from achieved. More than 10,000 pieces of medical equipment had yet to be installed, plumbing infrastructure remained unfinished, rendering all restrooms unusable, and the building held no beds, no stock of medications, not even common over-the-counter pain relievers like Panadol for event attendees who might have fallen ill. Construction on the structure would drag on for months after the ceremony concluded, Jeremie added.
Beyond the hospital spending controversy, the Attorney General pinned the blame for recent international credit and economic downgrades for Trinidad and Tobago squarely on the PNM’s previous term in office. He defended the current United National Congress (UNC) administration’s economic management, arguing that the former finance minister Colm Imbert and his colleagues were responsible for the country’s ongoing economic challenges. Jeremie also pushed back against opposition criticism of the current government’s new fiscal measures, clarifying that recent increased penalties across multiple sectors are not new taxes, but enforcement penalties for violations of the law. He accused the PNM opposition of deliberately spreading misinformation to stoke public fear and anger toward the ruling administration.
Jeremie also used the parliamentary address to reinforce the current government’s commitment to equal application of the law, stating that no person—regardless of their social status, political connections, or ties to powerful institutions like banks or former prime ministers—is above the law. He contrasted this with what he claimed was the PNM’s long-standing culture of applying different rules to people based on their connections, adding that the opposition’s default response to policy disagreement is to incite unrest rather than engage in constructive debate.
The Attorney General claimed that recent attempts at unrest have included collaborations between opposition-aligned elements and two notorious local gangs, known as Sixx and Seven, to stir up public disorder. He closed by reiterating his accusation that opposition lawmakers have spread ignorance and stoked dangerous social tension in recent debates, with one unnamed opposition representative engaging in particularly “loathsome and repugnant” rhetoric to drive division.