Trinidad and Tobago’s opposition wants criminal inquiries into a former acting state telecom chief and a health-board chairman, and the government says it is shielding no one.
Key Facts
—What. Opposition chief whip Marvin Gonzales urged criminal probes of a former acting telecom chief and a health-board chairman.
—Money. Gonzales says a TT$49 million (Trinidad and Tobago dollars; about US$7.3 million) call-centre contract moved from open tender to a single supplier.
—Reply. Public Utilities Minister Barry Padarath says the government protects no one and the company board acted.
—Status. These are allegations made in Parliament; we found no report of charges.
—As of 14 November 2026, 07:00 GMT.
An Opposition Motion on State Companies
Trinidad and Tobago’s opposition has asked for criminal investigations into the former acting head of the state phone company and the chairman of a state health authority. Marvin Gonzales, the opposition chief whip (the lawmaker who organises his party’s votes), made the call in a private motion in the House of Representatives on how state-owned bodies are run.
He named Keino Cox, the former acting chief executive of Telecommunications Services of Trinidad and Tobago (TSTT), the state-owned telecom operator. He also named Dr Tim Gopeesingh, chairman of the North Central Regional Health Authority (NCRHA), the state body that runs public hospitals and clinics in the north-central region.
Gonzales belongs to the People’s National Movement (PNM), now in opposition to the governing United National Congress (UNC). These are allegations made in Parliament, not findings by a court, and we found no record of charges or any public reply from Gopeesingh.
The Telecom Contract at the Centre
Gonzales said an open tender worth TT$49 million (about US$7.3 million, at about TT$6.72 per US$, the midpoint of the Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago’s buying and selling rates on 13 November) was changed to a sole-select contract. That means one supplier was picked without competition, and he said it went to a company called Hummingbird Holdings Ltd, which we could not otherwise identify.
TSTT’s chairman, Kern Dass, said in late August that management had not taken the three-year call-centre arrangement to the board. He said the board had ordered an immediate review, and TSTT has shelved the deal.
Cox’s acting appointment expired on 31 July 2026, and TSTT has since replaced him. Gonzales told the House that an independent investigation found Cox misled the board in a memorandum of Monday 3 August, a claim we could not confirm.
In Plain English
Private motion: a proposal brought by an individual lawmaker, not by the government. It can state a view, but it does not open an investigation by itself.
Sole-select: a purchase from one supplier chosen without open competition. Rules usually require a reason.
State enterprise: a company owned by the government, such as TSTT. Its losses and legal bills fall on the public purse.
Payments, Water and Other Demands
Gonzales said the National Payment and Innovation Company of T&T (NPICTT), a state payments company, reportedly signed a ten-year, TT$4.4 billion (about US$655 million) contract with WiPay, a Trinidadian payments firm, without a procurement process. He asked the Finance Minister to explain, and we found no reply from the minister.
Gonzales said the opposition has information that removing directors and senior managers of the Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA, the state water utility) will cost taxpayers over TT$30 million (about US$4.5 million) in settlements. Across state companies, he said, compensation for allegedly illegal dismissals could exceed TT$500 million (about US$74 million), a figure we could not verify.
The Government Pushes Back
Public Utilities Minister Barry Padarath replied that the government is protecting no one and that TSTT’s board acted on the call-centre contract. Padarath is also Leader of Government Business, the minister who steers the government’s agenda in the House.
Gonzales is himself a former Public Utilities Minister, the post Padarath now holds. We found no reply from Gonzales to that point.
What It Means for You
TSTT and NCRHA are publicly owned, so a contract found improper or a damages bill lands on taxpayers, not private shareholders. Gonzales puts the possible compensation bill across state companies above TT$500 million (about US$74 million); no official figure confirms it.
We found no US company named in any contract in the debate, so the direct US link is limited. Our guides explain who holds power in Trinidad and Tobago and who runs its economy.
What to Watch
Parliament had not published a confirmed date for a committee hearing on these allegations when we checked. The outcome of Gonzales’s motion is not confirmed.
No date has been announced for any follow-up on the call-centre review or the other allegations. We will report it when one is set.
What Is Not Known
Coverage dated 13 November says Gonzales spoke “yesterday”, which points to 12 November, but no sitting date or vote result is published. We also could not see what specific procurement allegations Gonzales made against the NCRHA chairman.
We found no sign that police or another authority has opened a criminal inquiry into Cox or Gopeesingh. The contents of any TSTT review and the status of the WiPay contract are also unknown.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Marvin Gonzales?
He is the opposition chief whip in Trinidad and Tobago’s House of Representatives and a member of the People’s National Movement. He is also a former Public Utilities Minister.
What did he demand?
He urged criminal investigations into former TSTT acting chief Keino Cox and NCRHA chairman Dr Tim Gopeesingh. He also asked the Finance Minister to explain a payments contract.
Has anyone been charged?
We found no record of charges against either man. Allegations made in Parliament are not court findings.
How did the government respond?
Minister Barry Padarath said the government protects no one and that TSTT’s board acted on the call-centre contract. He also noted that Gonzales is a former Public Utilities Minister.
Sources
Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago, sitting and committee schedule · Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago, exchange rates of 13 November 2026
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