Senior Reporter
akash.samaroo@cnc3.co.tt
The former minister of the now defunct Ministry of Youth Development and National Service (MYDNS) is hitting back at the plethora of allegations of financial wastage, favouritism and corruption made against him by Sports and Youth Affairs Minister Phillip Watts.
In vehemently denying all claims yesterday, Foster Cummings in turn accused Watts and the Government of attempting to create a smokescreen to mask their plan to scrap the youth programmes started by his former ministry.
The Opposition Senator said he is also unbothered by the minister’s promise to send the evidence he has to the Attorney General.
During his contribution to the debate in the Lower House to adopt the report of the Standing Finance Committee (SFC) on Monday, Watts, who defeated Cummings in the April 28 General Election in the constituency of La Horquetta/Talparo, said he has information that Cummings greenlighted several short-term contracts prior to the election. He claimed Cummings also hired several People’s National Movement (PNM) members to positions commanding salaries of over $20,000 a month although they were unqualified to hold those position. Watts said he also has evidence the ministry’s youth caravans started to cost taxpayers around $400,000 per event in the lead-up to the election.
During a media briefing at the Opposition Leader’s Office in Port-of-Spain yesterday, however, Cummings said the accusations were a distraction because Government was planning to cut over 30 programmes started under his ministry.
“You have the minister talking about an audit. And fine, you can do an audit. It’s public funds. And you’re entitled to audit. But in the meantime, do not try to hide behind all of these excuses, because your real intention is to shut down these programmes,” Cummings contended.
Responding to the allegation that he hired several people under short-term contracts, Cummings said, “You see, a lot of the new ministers don’t understand the process. Clearly, this minister does not understand the process in the public service for recruitment, employment, and payment of staff. A minister cannot hire anyone, and I certainly couldn’t hire anybody. Maybe that’s what they’re doing now.”
In defence of the PNM members hired to the ministry, particularly former Education minister Anthony Garcia, Cummings said they were all adequately qualified and being affiliated with the PNM should not disqualify them for a job.
“Anthony Garcia is a former principal of Fatima. He is a former minister of government. He is a former head of TTUTA, a former member of parliament. And if we talk about youth development and youth training, Mr Garcia was working on the reopening of the youth camps. With a track record like that, who better to advise us?”
With respect to the cost of youth caravans, Cummings said he was unaware of the finances behind the initiative, but said in doing the math, that figure appears to be value for money.
“If it did cost that amount, well, then it’s money well spent. Yeah, it’s a massive event. I’m surprised that that is the cost. Because when you look at the operation, I’m surprised. This is money well spent for the young people of Trinidad and Tobago,” Cummings said.
Sitting nearby, his colleague, Faris Al-Rawi, made some calculations and said the caravans targeted at least 1,500 young people per visit. He said that works out to around $260 per person for an initiative that provided food and transport.
Cummings said he believes Watts, who was his former constituency chairman before defecting to the United National Congress, is creating untruths in an attempt to retaliate for what he insinuated was a blow to Watts’ private business ventures.
“There’s a project called the La Horquetta Community Center, where a contractor was assigned since 2020, a project that was supposed to last 12 months. In 2025, that project remained incomplete, and the UdecoTT had to terminate the contractor from that site to bring in another contractor to complete that project.”
Cummings said this was just one example of the contractor being penalised for incomplete work.
“The same contractor, who is now a minister, standing like Pontius Pilate in the parliament yesterday and talking about reckless spending.”
Minister responds
Contacted for his response on this, Watts said he was managing director for the company - Sphinx Construction - involved in the projects. However, he said the community centre was not completed due to UdecoTT’s failure to pay on time.
“They were dragging with paying us on the project, so we had to slow it down like any other contractor, but when we reached 95 per cent completion of the project, they chose to terminate. Ask yourself where in Trinidad and Tobago they terminate a contractor at 95 per cent completion, especially when they cannot pay the contractor their interim payments on time.”
Watts said this does not affect his ability to call out the corruption he’s so far unearthed.
“There’s no reason for me to mix the two. Right now, I am doing Government business. I’m responsible for our ministry and I will raise any discrepancies that I see in the ministry. It is my duty to the people of Trinidad and Tobago to do that, and I do my due diligence and whatever I would have come to Parliament with, I would have facts to back it up,” Watts said, adding the information has already been handed over to the AG.
Watts said it was also false to accuse Government of seeking to close down youth programmes.
“Have you heard of any initiative that was closed down under the ministry as yet? All the programmes are still alive.”