Tobago Forwards calls for TJE audit

Deputy Chairman of the Tobago Forwards, Kevon McKenna, on Wednesday called for audited financial statements for last weekend’s 2018 Tobago Jazz Experience as well as the 2017 festival, and also wanted the “actual budget” for the event as opposed to the estimated $7.3 million officially announced to host the event.

At a news conference at the Scarborough Port, McKenna, noting that the event was being dubbed a success based on social media feedback with commenters reporting a good turnout and that patrons enjoyed the shows over the two days, also said actual attendance figures were needed to decide this.

McKenna’s call followed a similar call by Minority leader Watson Duke on Tuesday, who classed the event as a non-profitable venture in its 10 years of existence and challenged organisers to produce documentation to provide evidence the money invested into the two- day event.

On Wednesday, McKenna said:

“We were given an estimated budget before the jazz, we are now asking that the actual budget be released. We are also asking the (Festivals Commission) chairman (George Leacock), who would have called on John Arnold (former event organiser) in the past to give full disclosure of the budget, to do so now, because all that would have changed is who sits in the chair.

“We are also asking for full disclosure - in terms of how many tickets were printed, how many was sold at the regular price, how many were sold at the 40 per cent, how many were given away under the guise of invitations, how many were given away by the Secretary, how many were given away by the Chairman and other members of the Festival’s Commission.”

McKenna added: “We are also calling on the Chairman and by extension, the Secretary (of Tourism and Culture), Mrs Nadine Stewart Phillips, for the first time, as we know jazz has never made a profit and has never had an audited financial statement, we are asking for an audit of the Financial Statements of the 2018 Jazz Experience and also the 2017 edition.

“Also we are asking for the returns on investments. Telling us the crowd size for an event that is supposed to be benefitting tourism doesn’t help us, we want to know the figures.

“Let us know what were the occupancy levels for the hotels in the west, the hotels in the east. Hope many persons came from Trinidad, because I know they said that we were targeting the local tourists, how was vendors’ sales during that period along with car rentals.”

Contacted for comment, Leacock said the Commission will submit its report as for any other event that is run by the State, and its accounts, like all others of the Commission, will be audited.

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