(Trinidad Express) More questions surrounding the multimillion-dollar house of Tobago House of Assembly (THA) Minority Leader Ashworth Jack have surfaced.
Sunday Express investigations have revealed that Super Industrial Services (SIS), the construction firm that did extension works at Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar’s residence in Philippine, south Trinidad, in March, also worked on Jack’s TT$2 million house in Hillsborough, Mt St George, Tobago.
In a recent media statement, Jack told the country his home was built by CJ Construction, a company owned by his brother Curtis Jack.
In an exclusive interview with the Sunday Express earlier this month, Jack responded to questions about any SIS involvement in the construction of his home and if the Tobago house was a “gift” from a local contractor.
He denied this, saying he was not “hand-to-mouth” and was solely responsible for building his family a “nice” home.
He also disclosed that he was employed with a Trinidad firm, Phoenix Welding and Fabricating Ltd, one of four jobs he holds, which allowed him to fund his eight-room, two-storey home overlooking the sea, without having to take bank loans.
Internet checks revealed Phoenix is an associate company or subsidiary of SIS—which means Jack was indirectly associated with SIS.
Sunday Express investigations also revealed a construction company trading under the name Casa Contractors Ltd did in fact work on the private residence of the Tobago Organisation of the People (TOP) leader.
Jack is on record as saying CJ Construction, owned by his brother Curtis Jack, was responsible for building his home.
Casa Contractors shares the same trading address as SIS, at #23 Rivulet Road, Brechin Castle, Couva, according to documents received by the Sunday Express.
There is no listing of Casa on the Ministry of Legal Affairs’ Company Registry.
But when the Sunday Express called the number listed for Casa on a list of companies compiled by the National Insurance and Property Development Company Ltd (Nipdec) online, a security officer explained that Casa was a part of SIS.
It is public knowledge that SIS, a known financier of the ruling United National Congress (UNC), was the recipient of several lucrative contracts from the People’s Partnership Government, including the TT$45 million Siparia Market and TT$70 million Couva/Preysal Interchange which Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar officially opened earlier this year.
Informed sources told the Sunday Express that Casa Contractors joined CJ Construction during December 2010-2011 to complete the job on Jack’s house in Tobago.
One of the workers who worked on the residence, which includes a swimming pool, told the Sunday Express: “There were two contractors, CJ and SIS, who worked on this really massive house.”
He said two crews were operating at the same time.
Told that documents he provided to the Sunday Express made reference to Casa Contractors, and not SIS, the employee insisted that “they are one and the same”.
“The crew from SIS had about 18 to 20 workers and the other one from CJ Construction had about 13,” he disclosed.
The worker, who asked not to be named, said CJ workers were responsible for the basic, more labour-intensive aspects of the job, including bricklaying, while SIS’s crew did the finer aspects of the job, including the plastering and more refined wood and concrete works.
He described the house as oval-shaped and said the two master bedrooms were located upstairs while the other rooms were located on the ground floor.
He also confirmed the SIS-linked company did not advertise its presence by putting up a public sign as is usually the case of many construction firms, who use the opportunity to advertise their business while carrying out a job.
The employee’s disclosure contradicts a media release dated December 11, issued by Jack, which stated that “the work was done by CJ Construction, a firm owned by my brother” and with the help of Tobago’s “len’ hand” communal system of help.
Contacted last week for a comment on this latest information, Jack, who is hoping to become Tobago’s next chief secretary, up against incumbent People’s National Movement (PNM) deputy political leader Dr Orville London at the polls on January 21, 2013, would only say that he stands by his media release.
“I have nothing more to say,” he added.
Several text messages and phone calls to Jack last week for further clarification were not answered.
Jack, who claimed to be in touch with the Prime Minister on a daily basis, has received her public support during this time of scrutiny.
Persad-Bissessar told reporters last Monday that she empathised with her political partner since questions were also asked about her private residence when it was being built in Philippine.
“I don’t know why it is a crime for a person to work hard and build a house,” she said, adding, “I remember there were so many allegations regarding the building of my own home.”
In a Sunday Express exclusive interview on December 9, Jack had dismissed any notion that his private residence was a “gift” from a local contractor in Trinidad.
He said he had paid for his home by holding down four jobs, including from funds accrued from the sale of cucumbers and pumpkin from his garden.
He indicated at the time that he was also being paid a TT$35,000-a-month salary as project manager with a firm in Trinidad.
He added that his salary went directly towards materials for his home.
He also told the Sunday Express, at that time, that if SIS wanted to build a home for anybody in Tobago for free, they should contact him directly: “If they (SIS) want to build anything for free, then there is need for a home for underprivileged children in Tobago, and I would love to have them build it,” he said.
While Jack claims the land bought in 2000 has been “fully paid for”, to date, he has shown no evidence of this, and Tobago businessman Allan Warner, from whom he acquired the land, would only state that they had reached a settlement.
Tobagonians are also questioning Jack’s relation with the company with which he publicly stated he is employed.
In his statement, he disclosed that in addition to being employed with his brother’s company, he was also employed with a Trinidad company called “Phoenix Welding & Fabricating Ltd, on a project basis”.
A check with this company’s website revealed that Phoenix Welding is one of the several associate companies of SIS, which shares the same board members, under the directorship of Einool Hosein.
Phoenix lists its capabilities as architectural, marine, industrial, ornamental and automotive specialties.
The Sunday Express initially spoke with SIS director Hosein more than a week ago, and he denied any involvement by SIS in the construction of Jack’s home.
Asked about the Casa Contractors link, Hosein said he was at his doctor’s office and would return the call.
Dozens of attempts to reach him over the course of the next several days proved futile as calls went unanswered and text messages got no response.
Efforts to contact SIS manager Cindy Seecharan at its Couva office also were futile, and messages left for her also remained unanswered.
Meanwhile, Jack is also being linked to another controversial developer as a project manager, but when contacted, a spokesperson from the HR department of the San Juan-based company would only say last week, “I will not confirm or deny that he is working with us. Why don’t you ask Mr Jack?”
The Sunday Express had put the question to Jack in an earlier interview and he had denied working with the company.
