Trinidad and Tobago’s Rural Development and Local Government Minister Khadijah Ameen has announced a sweeping anti-corruption push targeting public servants who collude with private developers and contractors to bypass regulatory rules, confirming that law enforcement agencies including the police and the national Fraud Squad will be brought into cases where solid evidence of misconduct is found. Ameen made the announcement while speaking to reporters at Mosquito Creek in South Oropouche on Wednesday, where she was responding to growing public concerns about unregulated construction and the illegal blockage of critical regional waterways – issues that have directly exacerbated flooding risks across low-lying communities in the country.
In her remarks, Ameen framed the current crisis of unregulated development as the product of decades of unaddressed lawlessness, saying bad actors have long been allowed to flout rules without consequence because of systemic complicity within government agencies. She explained that many developers and contractors knowingly block public drainage canals and waterways to make way for unapproved construction projects, and even engage in illegal dumping of construction waste in these watercourses – all because they know they will not face penalties. “It is years of lawlessness that has caused major developments to go up without regulation, where people are not even considerate, even if they are not following the law,” Ameen told reporters. “They are not even considerate because they know there is a drain there and they go and they block it. Even when it comes to dumping.”
The minister emphasized that the problem extends far beyond private non-compliance, revealing that the public officials tasked with enforcing planning and environmental rules are often the ones breaking them. She specifically named building inspectors, litter prevention wardens, municipal corporation staff, and public health employees as groups where corrupt collusion with developers has been rampant for years. “Over the years there are numerous public servants who, while no case has been pursued against them, people know them to be involved in corruption because they take bribes and they allow buildings that do not meet the requirements to get approvals,” Ameen stated. “A lot of public health things go on, they are in cahoots with contractors, they are in cahoots with developers, and that is part of our problem in local government, it is a fact. So, that is one of the things that we have to clamp down on.”
Ameen confirmed that multiple internal investigations into these corrupt practices are already underway, being conducted in close coordination with the ministry’s permanent secretary in line with existing public service disciplinary regulations. “The police of course, and the Fraud Squad would be called in where it’s necessary, and we will work with the authorities where we have evidence of wrongdoing,” she added.
Beyond the corruption crackdown, Ameen also addressed recent severe flooding that hit Claxton Bay and Gasparillo following heavy mid-week rainfall, noting that the affected areas fall under the oversight of the Couva/Tabaquite/Talparo Regional Corporation (CTTRC). She shared a key positive observation: historically flood-prone areas that had pre-emptive watercourse clearing work completed avoided major flooding this time around, proving that proactive maintenance works. The CTTRC deployed all available resources to respond to the recent flooding, and Ameen confirmed the authority had sufficient capacity to bring the situation under control.
On the subject of national flood preparedness, Ameen said the ministry has made significant improvements this year, including pre-positioning emergency disaster supplies from the central national warehouse across all 14 regional corporations to cut response times during flood events. She added that resolving decades of systemic mismanagement and corruption will be a gradual process, and has called on all municipal corporation chairs to work closely with local communities to prioritize long-term public well-being over improper private gain. “What is right and best for the communities is being sought, but it did not reach to this stage overnight,” Ameen said, noting that many blocked drains were reported to authorities years ago without any follow-up action, allowing the flood risk to grow steadily over time.