PS Creed refutes letter, boxing card allegations
Ashwin Creed, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Sport, has refuted allegations brought against him and his Ministry by former Trinidad and Tobago Boxing Board of Control (TTBBC) member Ricardo Phillip, in a letter to the Integrity Commission, as "unfounded".
Creed was speaking at a media conference at the Ministry's headquarters in Port of Spain yesterday, when he insisted that no money was or will be given to Unified Promoters' Boxing Association for a Boxing Day card.
"Unequivocally, no money has been given to the Unified Promotions for any upcoming fight. Not one dollar, not 1.9 million dollars," said Creed.
He also addressed other allegations cited in Phillip's letter to the Integrity Commission, stating: "I have no family in this Ministry. I have no family in the Boxing Board. Mr (Boxu) Potts was never a member of the Boxing Board. He is an adviser to the Board. There is nothing before us except for the request for the $1.9 million. There is no other request coming from the Board to refute what was sent for this fight."
Creed said the Ministry will be moving in a different direction when it comes to boxing over the next six months. He said the future of boxing has to be about development.
"In the future months we will not be funding any professional card until we are satisfied that we are seeing a proper development programme coming about. For the next six months, the focus will be on development of boxing and given this new dispensation, the new Board will have to come up with a plan for this development," Creed explained.
But while the Ministry will not be funding professional boxing cards for the next few months, Creed insisted: "We deliberated and we thought it best that the major activity of the (Boxing Day) card be transferred to the Tobago card and we will give support in that direction."
About the letter to the Integrity Commission, Creed said: "We are not moved by any letter sent to the Integrity Commission because, at the end of the day, you have to prove your allegations.
"All we have seen are email letters to the Integrity Commission...levelling certain allegations of which all are unfounded.
"And what are the allegations? Employment?" he asked.
"The Ministry does not employ members of the Boxing Board, the Board is empowered to hire their people. And any card coming to the Ministry is vetted by our sports department. At the end of the day, it is what we feel judiciously that we should approve," he said.
Minister of Sport Anil Roberts, in his address at the launch of the Spirit of Sport awards at Hyatt Regency hotel earlier yesterday, alluded to the controversy over the money for the proposed Boxing Day card and gave a breakdown of how the Ministry deals with requests for funding.
"All officials here can make any requests. They can ask for a billion dollars, this does not make a Guardian headline. What makes the headline is what you actually get based on the merit of your request," said Roberts.
"So the process begins with the request. It could be $1.9 million. It goes through a boxing board who should go through it and see what makes sense and what does not make sense.
"It is then passed on to the Ministry of Sport who will go through it, analyse everything, vet it and come down and say that is too much," he explained.
Creed also alluded to "serious governance issues" in the TTBBC as one of the reasons for the recent removal of four Boxing Board members.
The four sacked officials are former deputy chairman Yaqub Abdul-Haqq and ordinary board members Janet Dennis, Mala Nasib and Phillip. They have been replaced by newly-appointed chairman, attorney Annabelle Davis, the People's Partnership candidate for Port of Spain North/St Ann's West in the 2010 general election, Ruth Marchan, Colin Mills (Tobago) and Neale Greaves.
Creed said: "Over the last couple of months we have received a lot of information regarding the operations of the Board and particularly where state funds are concerned. There are serious governance issues that the Ministry now has to deal with.
"Issues in relation to unauthorised stipends being paid outside of the normal stipend and this does not happen with the Sports Company and other Boards...members of the Board being paid for services and members of Boards being paid for contracts.
"This information will now be receiving the attention of the audit department. They will make recommendations and we will take if forward.
"This is one of the reasons why the Minister had to make the decision he made in terms of changing board members. It was a decision in the interest of boxing and the management of State funding. I am about treating with the facts and what is before me does not look very pleasant at all," said Creed.
"It is very, very alarming. I will not go into the details of it because it is now receiving the attention of the audit department and when that is finished, then we will see then who should be reported to the Integrity Commission."
By Roger Seepersad
Source: www.trinidadexpress.com