PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad – Finance Minister Davendranath Tancoo Monday said that the state-owned Caribbean Airlines (CAL) had spent more than TT$60 million on audits, but had failed to submit ”a single audited financial statement to the Ministry of Finance in over nine years”.
Tancoo, delivering the first budget of the Kamla Persad Bissessar coalition administration, told legislators that the money had been paid to Ernst & Young and PricewaterhouseCoopers.
“Shockingly, even in the absence of these audited accounts, the former Minister of Finance repeatedly approved financing for CAL in 2017, 2018, 2019 and as recently as March 2025 to cover operational shortfalls.”
Tancoo accused the former finance minister Colm Imbert of closing “his eyes as CAL descended into inefficiency, non-compliance and fiscal indiscipline, leaving behind not a national airline but a national liability.
“Worse yet, he actively fueled this reckless behaviour by repeatedly approving billions in financing without demanding accountability,” Tancoo said, adding that in so doing, the former government minister “facilitated mismanagement, normalized waste and corruption and abandoned his responsibility of fiduciary oversight.
“This is nothing short of criminal negligence. We have now installed a strong board of directors who are making the hard decisions required to fix our national airline,” he told legislators.
Earlier, CAL confirmed the immediate resignation of its chief executive officer Garvin Medera and that to ensure continuity and stability, chief operating officer, Nirmala Ramai, has been appointed acting chief executive officer “until further notice”.
It said that under the “guidance” of the board of directors she “will work closely with the senior leadership team to support the airline through this transition”.
The statement gave no reasons for the “immediate resignation” but thanked Medera “for his years of service and leadership and wishes him the very best in his future endeavours”.
CAL said that it would “continue to operate its full schedule, with no disruption to customers or partners” and that the board of directors “emphasises that this leadership transition comes at an important time for the airline and is part of its ongoing focus on stability, safety and accountability”
The statement by CAL on Monday said that as part of the new transition, the board and senior leadership team will be focusing on five key initiatives, namely supporting employees and stakeholders with open communication and care, reviewing operations to increase efficiency and modernisation, enhancing the customer experience with improved services, developing a long-term, financially responsible and sustainable growth plan and conducting full and thorough audits of all departments and processes, to strengthen governance, safety, and accountability.
“The airline also reaffirmed its commitment to developing and promoting talent from within the organization, before seeking external candidates, to provide employees with clear opportunities for growth and career advancement.
“Caribbean Airlines will continue to serve the region with pride, reliability and a steadfast commitment to safety. The Board of Directors remains committed to open and timely communication with employees, customers and stakeholders as this leadership transition and strategic plan are implemented,” the statement added.
