Caption: Opposition Leader Pennelope Beckles. Photo: T&T Parliament
Summary
- Opposition Leader Penelope Beckles questioned the Government on how many people have been employed through the National Recruitment Drive.
- She claimed the drive is a ‘publicity stunt’ and alleged only about 1,800 people have been employed so far.
- Beckles said the UNC promised 50,000 jobs during the campaign and 20,000 jobs in the 2025 Budget, but argued no funding was allocated for the 20,000.
- She also asked how many homes have been built, citing a manifesto pledge of 20,000 affordable homes in two years and a claim of 500 houses per week.
- Beckles called for transparency on the new state enterprise Landmark TT Properties Limited, including its mandate, selection criteria and operating costs.
By Alicia Chamely
HOW many people have been employed and how many homes have been built?
This was the question posed to the Government by Opposition Leader Penelope Beckles on Wednesday at the Opposition’s weekly press conference, held at the Office of the Opposition Leader, Charles Street, Port of Spain.
Addressing the Government’s promises of job creation, Beckles said, “A matter that I wish to address has to do with the national recruitment drive. And to make it abundantly clear that from where we sit, it has been—and continues to be—a publicity stunt.”
Beckles said that the United National Congress promised 50,000 jobs on the campaign trail and, in October 2025, promised 20,000 jobs in its Budget presentation.
She said one concern of the Opposition was that there were “no funds allocated in the budget for the supposed 20,000 jobs that they kept speaking about and telling the public.”
Beckles said the matter was raised during the Committee Stage of the Budget Debate and that the Government could not state where the funds would come from.
She also questioned job vacancies being advertised online by various ministries, saying, “They are actually existing jobs where there are already bodies in those jobs. Therefore, we want to make it very clear that position exchange is not job creation—and to the public—that job interviews are not employment.”
On the National Recruitment Drive, Beckles said, “If you recall the Honourable Prime Minister and several members of Cabinet hosting about the 100,000 people and the thousands of people that showed up in Central, I want the Government to say to the public today: How many people have been employed? Because as far as we know, it’s only 1,800 people.”
Calling the Government’s promises “fake and fraudulent,” Beckles said, “We are calling on the Government to take responsibility for the statements that they made—to ensure that the thousands of people who are not employed and not working get the jobs you promised during your campaign—and that the people of Trinidad and Tobago are working.”
Turning to housing, Beckles read from the UNC manifesto: “In Trinidad and Tobago, high property prices and limited financing make home ownership difficult. The UNC aims to transform this by providing affordable housing as a foundation for stable communities and economic [growth]. The UNC will launch an ambitious plan to build 20,000 affordable homes in two years, using public-private partnerships and innovative building technologies to ensure rapid and efficient construction.”
She added, “You would also remember that the Honourable Jearlean John indicated that they would be distributing some 500 houses per week, because that is what this Government would be involved in as it relates to construction of housing. I want to ask this Government: They have now been 10 months in office. I want them to tell the public how many houses they have constructed to date—with three ministers.”
Beckles called on the Government to update the public on its housing promises and questioned the creation of Landmark TT Properties Limited, a new state enterprise under the Ministry of Land and Legal Affairs, responsible for a state private-housing initiative and an initiative to address underutilised state lands.
She questioned why the project was placed under the Ministry of Land and Legal Affairs and not the Ministry of Housing.
Beckles said, “So they must tell us, and they must publish the full mandate of this Landmark TT Property. They must tell us exactly what is the objective, what is the criteria for the companies or organisations that will benefit from the state land. They must also publish the criteria for the beneficiaries of this project. It must be a transparent exercise, and they must also tell us what is the operational cost of setting up this Landmark TT Property.”
