Where the money gone? TT sports minister tracking missing $81M

The Manning PNM government allocated $81 million to refurbish stadiums in Trinidad and Tobago. But the job was not done and now the country's new Sport and Youth Affairs Minister Anil Roberts wants to know where the money went.

Roberts told reporters Wednesday the sporting facilities were in a state of disrepair up to 10 days before the recently concluded Women's FIFA under-17 World Cup football tournament because the former government had done nothing to repair the facilities.

He said the government had to intervene. "There could have been no world cup. The stadiums were dilapidated," he said.

"Right now there is a forensic audit going on in the Sport Company and we have the Auditor General's report which shows that the money was allocated and misappropriated. 

"It was not spent on what it should have been spent on and we are going to solve that problem," Roberts promised.

He said his ministry will find a suitable company maintain the various stadiums and save the government of millions of dollars. 

He said once a new board is in place at the Sport Company of T&T (Sportt) it will invited tenders for a facilities management expert company "so that we don't have to come every two years and spend $100 million".

Roberts added, "If we want to go in the general direction of sport tourism, we have to upkeep and maintain facilities at an international challenge."