Agriculture
Why is ATFA being singled out?
A.T.F.A. questions why Chief Secretary Farley Augustine did not divulge more information about which contractors were paid in full or received partial payment for oil spill response.
Curtis Douglas, president of the All Tobago Fisherfolk Association (ATFA), expressed dissatisfaction with Chief Secretary Farley Augustine’s explanations regarding payments to fishermen for their oil spill response efforts. Douglas argued that Augustine should have been more transparent about which contractors were fully paid and which were not. ATFA has consistently complained about being owed money for their assistance during the February 7th Gulfstream oil spill. Augustine explained that $1.13 million was paid to ATFA in May; however, because their invoices were submitted after April, the central government did not approve funding for those bills. He added that a $2 million payment to ATFA is currently being processed, leaving a remaining balance of $3 million to be settled in 2025.
