“It was rumored that Pan Trinbago money went into all the legal fees…..?'
‘Yeah right, Yeah Right,” he said fishing at first for a response to the question sprung on him, sitting on a chair behind a desk full of papers which by a wild stretch of the imagination he thought made him look important.
It was a Facebook Live broadcast courtesy Marcus Ash, Secretary of the Eastern Region of Pan Trinbago.
“You see there are people who will recognize when you have a good case and when you have a good case somebody will have to pay for their losses,” Richard Forteau Secretary of Pan Trinbago, under scrutiny for the first time, said.
“ Are you saying it is on record that Pan Trinbago…?” Marcus Ash continued. But Forteau shut him down, forestalling the direct question that may have cornered him into telling an outright lie.
Never mind that ten weeks before on April 19th, 2018, the first cheque, 0000959 for TT$22,500, was cut for Attorney Farid Scoon, who five days later brought a claim, on April 24th, 2018, against President Keith Diaz and Northern Regional Chairman Gerard Mendez and Tobago’s Regional Chairwoman, Marie Toby who were part of an interim committee appointed to run the affairs of Pan Trinbgao following an Extra Ordinary general meeting.
And guess what? More money will be spent as Forteau and company with a life expectancy of just a few months have decided to appeal one part of the judgment handed down by Justice Ronnie Boodoosingh.
All this time, the entire steel band community including the most prestigious and legendary steelbands in the world, along with all the downstream suppliers who collectively make Panorama the largest revenue generating event for the annual carnival festival are spiraling downwards in a financial drought.
But playing smart with foolishness, however, Forteau manipulated the truth.
“Pan Trinbago has friends and there are some people who recognize that when you have a good case who lose will then have to pay. That is as best as I can put it for more than one reason”, he is on record as saying.
It was an outright lie, boldfaced and without remorse.
Pan Trinbago’s Pan Factory Account at RBC Royal Bank, #55 Independence Square shows by Pan Trinbago’s spending patterns it was a mere pittance the money withdrawn to pay Scoon for representing Forteau and five other members of the Central Executive in their quest for survival when steelbands from across the country met and fired the executive.
Indeed for the period March 20th to April 30, the Pan factory Account was depleted by TT$ 612,673.68.
With TT$620,000 in the account at the end of March, Pan Trinbago ended with TT$19,681.97 at the end of April.
The records would show there were consistent and steady withdrawals via cheques, with the single largest being TT$50,608.35.
That as both Forteau and Diaz put on their best sorry faces when explaining that not even the administrative staff at the Pan Trinbago’s Headquarters and by extension the support staff at the various regional offices have been getting their stipend.
And that the bands that have not received their prize monies, except for the Single Pan Bands who were paid shortly after their leg of the competition ended in February.
It was a highly unusual move. But they, after all, are instrumental for keeping Keith Diaz in the Presidency of Pan Trinbago and so, while he was able to, before the outcry against his leadership, which began in January 2017, grew any bigger (as it has), he settled his base first.
But since Carnival Pan Trinbago has all but declared itself bankrupt, waiting on government funds to bail them out of a financial dark hole which the longstanding Forteau and other members of the executive masterfully dug themselves into.
And not even the long arm of the law, via a sadly helpless High Court Justice Ronnie Boodoosingh could make a difference.
In his 14 page judgment often quoted by both sides, conveniently, the judge sets out the crux of the problem which is conflicting information about the membership of Pan Trinbago as both Diaz and Forteau gave conflicting information- to build their own case for and against the constitutionality of the meeting in which Forteau and the executive were fired ad an Interim Committee set up.
Not since the High Court judgment handed down in May, has anyone had the decency to clear the air about the true number of steelbands in good financial standing that are members of Pan Trinbago which would make them eligible to request the extraordinary meeting?
And the Judge opted to stay with the official figures handed down by the Secretary Forteau based on the statistics which Forteau provided to the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Community Development and Culture who would then disburse funds based on the number of steelbands listed.
We all speculate the list is padded and in the interest of fairness and integrity neither Forteau nor Diaz have provided information to clear the air,.
“The number of financial members signing the requisition is critical to the validity of the vote that was eventually taken at the meeting to remove the central executive.
“Having ruled on the law as it was set before him, Justice Boodoosingh chastised the Executive- all inclusive, in the final paragraph of his judgment.
‘Finally, I note some disturbing allegations are raised on both sides. It has not been necessary to identify them at this stage it is not for me to make the findings of fact on them. I would hope however that if it will not be business as usual, but that some consideration will be given to the fact that the substantial number of members whether or not they have met the high 60% threshold to call the meeting did feel sufficiently moved to express their dissatisfaction with how the organization has been managed. The executive members might well remind themselves that they were elected to serve and they are required to do so with integrity, competence, and skill.”
What has happened since?
Only to make matters worse, Forteau, Salvador, Joseph, Sheppard, Augustus and Reid appealed, effectively filing a lawsuit against Pan Trinbago Incorporated which was a claimant in the first matter.(See Photo below).
And that because Justice Boodoosingh declared ”the decisions taken at the 17th April meeting were taken in the name of Pan Trinbago. It was therefore notionally a decision of Pan Trinbago acting through members. The claim should proceed against Pan Trinbago and the members of the Interim Committee assuming they continue to defend the actions of the April 17th meeting,” he said when he struck out Pan Trinbago as the first claimant and added it as the first defendant.
Forteau, using the money of Pan Trinbago has moved to file an appeal against the entire steel band community in Trinidad and Tobago on May 14th.
It was another piece of information that he held back during that Facebook Live. He flipped the coin and it would cost far more than he has already paid Scoon.
Forteau, using the money of Pan Trinbago has moved to file an appeal against the entire steel band community in Trinidad and Tobago on May 14th.
It was another piece of information that he held back during that Facebook Live. He flipped the coin and it would cost far more than he has already paid Scoon.
If that wasn’t enough, Darren Sheppard fired off his own legal notices.
The External Relations Officer at Pan Trinbago who landed the enviable job as Events Manager- a post which was previously held by Pan Trinbago’s Vice President Bryan Serrette, before his fall out with Diaz which triggered the beginning of the end of Diaz.
Pan Trinbago’s Financial difficulties mean that Sheppard was not being paid his full contractual fee for April 2017 to February 2018.
But when his contract expired on March 31st, 2018, Pan Trinbago found the money and paid him the sum of TT$95,000 which was owed.
In the current climate of unrest this did not sit well with Gregory Lindsay the leader of the Power Stars Steel Orchestra, one of the most vocal campaigners for the removal of the executive and San City’s Aquil Arrindel, both of whom have been among the men leading the charge against the Keith Diaz executive since January 2017.
Well, using the heavyweight of former Attorney General Anand Ramlogan’s Freedom Law Chambers, Sheppard fired off pre-action protocol letter to both men saying that his public image has been adversely affected by defamatory statements which constitute serious slander and Libel and that he “suffer serious irreparable damage and financial loss.”
Former Prime Minister Patrick Manning would have put it all - all that you have read from the top until now- as “Wajang behavior.
Still, the substantive issue: that steel bands by the dint of their work and very existence who generate the income for Pan Trinbago are still sucking salt, five months after he 2018 Panorama Competition, has not been dealt with.
None of the large, medium and small bands have been paid.
These bands whose “asset base, personnel, equipment and real estate is the largest in steelband anywhere in the world”, who “represent so much of the best of leadership ability, organization and success in steelbands and are the main attraction in any steel band event.”
And then there was the large band caucus.
Phase Two, Starlift, Silver Stars, All Stars, Desperadoes, Renegades ( reigning Panorama Champs) Invaders, Exodus, Birdsong and La Brea Nightingales met.
And they seemed to have accepted responsibility for allowing some of it to happen, showing that NCC played with the fire too.
‘1. The executive of Pan Trinbago committed bands to a prize structure in excess of the monies allocated by the NCC
2. “Bands participated in the Panorama with full knowledge there was a financing gap between the NCC allocation and the Pan Trinbago Commitment
3 “The original defunct between the NCC allocation and the proposed Pan Trinbago Prize structure was worsened by advances to the latter by the former during the course of 2017.
4. Bad faith negotiations by Pan Trinbago in treating with its debt to the NCC compromised efforts to bolster the resources available for prize monies and appearance fees.
5. On directions from Pan Trinbago NCC continued to make partial disbursement at 2017 levels which could not have been sustained with the 2018 allocations’
6. As a result of 1-5 above from the 2018 allocations, approximately $8.1 million is currently available to service a reputed commitment of TT$16 million.
These bands want a prompt disbursement of the remaining allocation of TT$8.1 million to bands currently owed for Panorama 2018 and financing existing deficit of 50%
Outside of that, there is not so subtle campaigning for the executive of Pan Trinbago b with Newtown Playboyz and Phase Two pan Groove’s manager, Keiron Valentine, the former Mayor of Port of Spain throwing his hat in the ring, without an official launch.
Valentine is waiting in the wings with his manifesto and his support staff.
