1,600 entertainment players get COVID grant 1,600 entertainment players get COVID grant

Some 1,600 entertainment practitioners have benefited from relief under the CARE programme that has been implemented by the Government to help Jamaicans affected by the COVID-19 epidemic.

The entertainment practitioners have been given a one-time grant of $40,000, the same amount as players in the tourism sector, such as craft vendors and producers, independent tour guides and raft captains, as well as early childhood teachers. They, however, get a greater portion of bailout funds than barbers, hairdressers, beauty therapists and taxi and bus operators, who got $25,000.

A report of the audit that was conducted by the Auditor General's Department, which was tabled in the House of Representatives yesterday, said there were inconsistencies in the election of entertainment practitioners.

The auditor general said that although the data collection was coordinated by the Olivia 'Babsy' Grange-headed Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, the ministry did not have a system in place to verify the names submitted by the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission, Jamaica Federation of Musicians, Entertainers of Jamaica and Showjam entertainment groups.

According to the auditor general, the ministry instead relied on these associations to prepare and submit the names of members to be included in the overall list of entertainment practitioners and did not review the relevant controls at these entities to provide reasonable assurance that the information provided was legitimate.