debut: 2/16/17
39,578 runs
Sports Minister to meet SporTT CEO over TTCB funding
Sports and Youth Affairs Minister Phillip Watts has described the findings of a 2025 Sports Company of T&T (SporTT) internal audit report into T&T Cricket Board (TTCB) funding as 'very, very serious".Initially, when contacted on Wednesday by Guardian Media, Minister Watts said he could not comment on any TTCB matters because he did not want to override the Police Service’s fraud investigation.However, Guardian Media shared a copy of the internal SporTT document with the minister after he said he was not informed or briefed about its findings.“They were having a good time. They had a good thing going. It seems as though there was some sort of collusion. Let me talk to Jason (Williams - SporTT chief executive officer) on this on Monday. This is very, very serious,” he said after reading the report.
Sports and Youth Affairs Minister Phillip Watts has described the findings of a 2025 Sports Company of T&T (SporTT) internal audit report into T&T Cricket Board (TTCB) funding as 'very, very serious".Initially, when contacted on Wednesday by Guardian Media, Minister Watts said he could not comment on any TTCB matters because he did not want to override the Police Service’s fraud investigation.However, Guardian Media shared a copy of the internal SporTT document with the minister after he said he was not informed or briefed about its findings.“They were having a good time. They had a good thing going. It seems as though there was some sort of collusion. Let me talk to Jason (Williams - SporTT chief executive officer) on this on Monday. This is very, very serious,” he said after reading the report.
In 2023, former TTCB treasurer Kiswah Chaitoo filed a police report concerning $500,000 of missing funds. He was removed from the board and barred.
In March 2025, SporTT chief executive Jason Williams received a report from a board-appointed committee on funding provided to the TTCB between 2019 and 2023.
The audit committee’s report found that the board received $14.8 million more than its original allocations between 2019 and 2023. The TTCB was, at first, allocated $13.4 million, but eventually received $28.2 million in taxpayers' money.
$4.8 million was allocated to the TTCB in 2022, but the TTCB got $11.5 million, $6.7 million more.
In 2023, the budget was $2.33 million. The cricket board collected $11.7 million, $9.3 million more.
The Audit Committee’s investigation found that there were differences in the amount of money listed by the TTCB on invoices compared to the amounts of money it listed for the same event on supporting documents like cheques and vouchers. Specific occurrences were flagged in 2020, 2021 and 2023.
In 2020, the TTCB received $298,500 to support the development of women’s cricket. The investigation found that "There was no evidence of payments made to the clubs by TTCB."
SporTT gave the TTCB $153,000 for operational costs. More than $131,400 was unaccounted for. It was reported that only “Supports (documents) for $21,585 were seen.”
In 2021, the board got $201,000 for preparations for the region’s one-day cricket competition, the CG Insurance Super 50 Cup. The report found that there was no evidence of verification and approval of invoices by the TTCB, and no evidence of payment information seen (Cheque, payment vouchers, receipts from customers, ACH).
In 2023, due to the absence of supporting documents, no reconciliations (the process of verifying that two sets of records agree) were able to determine how $776,000 was spent. These events included $184,800 for a cricket academy and $218,625 for national Under-15, U-17 and U-19 preparations.
According to Guardian Media’s investigations, since 2014, the TTCB received more than $100 million in funding for the board and T&T Red Force (which it manages) from SporTT, Cricket West Indies (CWI), NGC (National Gas Company) and the Office of the Prime Minister’s Sport & Culture Fund (OPMSCF).
More than $53 million was in state funding.
In 2017, an audit of NGC funding to the TTCB found that at least $3 million of $13.3 million in funding was misappropriated (spent or transferred without necessary approval).
The TTCB is also 15 post-event audits behind for the CWI, amounting to around $20 million in funding.
Nonetheless, according to CWI’s financial records, the TTCB has received at least $54 million in funding from CWI for the TTCB and Red Force T&T Limited between 2021 and 2024.
In March 2025, SporTT chief executive Jason Williams received a report from a board-appointed committee on funding provided to the TTCB between 2019 and 2023.
The audit committee’s report found that the board received $14.8 million more than its original allocations between 2019 and 2023. The TTCB was, at first, allocated $13.4 million, but eventually received $28.2 million in taxpayers' money.
$4.8 million was allocated to the TTCB in 2022, but the TTCB got $11.5 million, $6.7 million more.
In 2023, the budget was $2.33 million. The cricket board collected $11.7 million, $9.3 million more.
The Audit Committee’s investigation found that there were differences in the amount of money listed by the TTCB on invoices compared to the amounts of money it listed for the same event on supporting documents like cheques and vouchers. Specific occurrences were flagged in 2020, 2021 and 2023.
In 2020, the TTCB received $298,500 to support the development of women’s cricket. The investigation found that "There was no evidence of payments made to the clubs by TTCB."
SporTT gave the TTCB $153,000 for operational costs. More than $131,400 was unaccounted for. It was reported that only “Supports (documents) for $21,585 were seen.”
In 2021, the board got $201,000 for preparations for the region’s one-day cricket competition, the CG Insurance Super 50 Cup. The report found that there was no evidence of verification and approval of invoices by the TTCB, and no evidence of payment information seen (Cheque, payment vouchers, receipts from customers, ACH).
In 2023, due to the absence of supporting documents, no reconciliations (the process of verifying that two sets of records agree) were able to determine how $776,000 was spent. These events included $184,800 for a cricket academy and $218,625 for national Under-15, U-17 and U-19 preparations.
According to Guardian Media’s investigations, since 2014, the TTCB received more than $100 million in funding for the board and T&T Red Force (which it manages) from SporTT, Cricket West Indies (CWI), NGC (National Gas Company) and the Office of the Prime Minister’s Sport & Culture Fund (OPMSCF).
More than $53 million was in state funding.
In 2017, an audit of NGC funding to the TTCB found that at least $3 million of $13.3 million in funding was misappropriated (spent or transferred without necessary approval).
The TTCB is also 15 post-event audits behind for the CWI, amounting to around $20 million in funding.
Nonetheless, according to CWI’s financial records, the TTCB has received at least $54 million in funding from CWI for the TTCB and Red Force T&T Limited between 2021 and 2024.
