SOCIAL Development and Family Services Minister Donna Cox said the police are investigating a programme launched under the former UNC-led People's Partnership (PP) coalition government for possible fraud and corruption.

Cox made this disclosure in her contribution to the budget debate in the House of Representatives on Tuesday.

Referring to a September 2012 cabinet note, Cox said this programme allowed for the production of 2,300 reloadable prepaid master cards for a one-time grant payment of $510, starting on September 3, 2012.

She indicated what the ministry's investigations into this programme discovered.

"The application form which accompanied the master cards stated that the cards could load up to a staggering $30,000 per day. This simple arithmetic reveals an alarming fact: 2,300 cards multiplied by $30,000 per day equals a potential daily sum of $69,000,000 that could have been laundered through this programme."

Cox told MPs, "As I stand here making my contribution, there has already been collaboration with the police on the issue of potential fraud and money laundering activities that may have taken place during the implementation of this master card fiasco."

Later in the sitting, Chaguanas East MP Vandana Mohit said Cox was "heavy on insinuation but low on fact."

Mohit dismissed Cox's statements. She claimed that Cox was justifying any future attempts by Government to reduce relief provided to vulnerable people.

"They (Government) have shut the doors on the disabled. They are coming for your food cards."

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