An internal audit investigation has revealed “evidence of misappropriation” of Hurricane Dorian funds given to the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture.
The contents of the report were never made public but Lanisha Rolle resigned as Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture five days after it was turned over to then-Prime Minister Dr. Hubert Minnis.
According to the report, Cabinet allocated $1.2 million for the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture’s Hurricane Dorian restoration projects. The vast majority of this amount was transferred to the National Sports Authority’s bank account.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian, the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture requested $240,000 for the upkeep of sports facilities on Abaco but the ministry “does not have any sports facilities in Abaco”, according to the internal audit ordered by the prime minister and Ministry of Finance.
The auditor concluded that other “questionable requests were submitted by this ministry”.
The ministry asked for $28,000 for office rent, which auditors called “unnecessary” as $80,000 was already budgeted to cover rent for the Grand Bahama office.
Another “unnecessary request” by the Ministry was $430,000 for the Self-Starter Program. Auditors also concluded this was not necessary as $840,000 was already budgeted to cover this program, which has not been fully realized.
The Ministry also asked for $42,000 for a National endowment for sports but it was discovered there was no shortage in the sports programming budget.
The report, dated February 18, 2021, was requested by Minnis following complaints by senior government officials in the ministry.