Report on audits into culture special interest groups by end of September

The question of the audit into Pan Trinbago in particular, came after there was much upheaval within the movement when panmen marched to its head office for non payment of money owed to them from the 2016 Carnival season.

The association eventually handed out $1,000 cheques but those bounced at the banks leaving panmen furious with the body and its president Keith Diaz.

Panmen also wanted answers concerning alleged questionable financial transactions by Pan Trinbago heads.

Under pressure, the National Carnival Commission (NCC) stepped in and stated it will take control of income from the gates of all national 2017 Carnival shows, but the groups will be allowed to manage their shows. However that was met with disdain by the groups.

TUCO president Lutalo Masimba said his organisation was not happy with the NCC’s approach while Pan Trinbago labeled the move as a hostile takeover. However Gadsby-Dolly denied the accusation back then.

Pan Trinbago in turn demanded a NCC probe and even threatened to take NCC to court. But in recent developments, the Pan Trinbago president has claimed NCC hasn’t given his organisation any money from gate receipts from the 2017 panorama competitions and thus couldn’t pay staff, nor has the players’ remittances been paid for 2017. But via a subsequent newspaper advertisement earlier this month, the NCC stated: “Although the full 2016 Government allocation of monies for pan was paid to Pan Trinbago, which included the players’ stipend for 2016, Pan Trinbago failed to pay the stipend to the steelband players.

Pan Trinbago subsequently informed NCC that it had no funds from which to settle the stipends.

Notwithstanding, in order to ensure that steelband players received their monies, the NCC agreed to advance $3.9 million to Pan Trinbago, on condition that these monies would be deducted from the revenue from 2017 ticket sales and their 2017 Government allocation.” The NCC also agreed to and has advanced money to Pan Trinbago to make its necessary payments but on the condition that the money would be deducted from the 2017 revenue. And regarding the players’ stipends for 2017, that money will be disbursed at the end of August.