JACHO Entertainment, the Trinidad and Tobago promoter involved in the controversial Vybz Kartel concert that failed to materalise last weekend, says it welcomes investigations into how it obtained foreign currency to pay the Jamaican dancehall superstar.

“At no time did Jacho Entertainment engage in any form of unauthorised or black-market currency exchange,” the company said in a statement, adding “we welcome any transparent review conducted within the bounds of law and due process.

“We remain ready to cooperate with any legitimate inquiry by the relevant authorities,” the company said as acting Police Commissioner, Junior Benjamin, announced, on Tuesday, that the Financial Investigations Branch (FIB) has been assigned to conduct an investigation into how the promoters of the One Caribbean Music Festival secured US dollars to pay the artistes.

Kartel was expected to have headlined the show with Jacho Entertainment saying that the Jamaican had been paid US$950,000 of the contracted US$1.35 million.

Finance Minister, Davendranath Tancoo, has said he was intrigued by the amount of foreign exchange being mentioned in relation to payment fees for artistes involved in the show and has since requested an investigation.

In its statement, Jacho Entertainment said it is a “fully registered and law-abiding entertainment promotion company” and that it maintains “strict compliance with all laws and regulations governing foreign exchange in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, including Central Bank guidelines”.

It said that “no formal report or complaint has been made to law enforcement concerning Jacho Entertainment and the transfer of USD” and that all festival-related payments, including those made to Vybz Kartel, (Adidja Palmer) were processed via “lawful and traceable banking procedures.

“There is no basis in law or fact for any presumption of wrongdoing solely because a private sector entity successfully accessed foreign exchange through proper legal channels,” Jacho Entertainment said, adding that “any investigation must be guided by reasonable and probable cause, not mere assumptions.

“The public interest is not served by engaging in a fishing expedition that targets a legitimate company without any formal allegation or evidence of impropriety.

“Jacho Entertainment is proud of its role in promoting Caribbean music and culture and remains committed to transparency, legal compliance, and excellence in event production,” it added.

Earlier this week, the Trinidad and Tobago Promoters Association (TTPA)said that it is “extremely concerned” at the circumstances that led to Vybz Kartel not performing here as advertised last weekend.

In its statement, the TTPA said it values the Trinidad and Tobago brand and that “we have a solid reputation worldwide as event producers of tremendous quality, the environment that our industry operates matters, the stakeholders that we all serve when we have an event matter.

“This event was not up to our standards and about this we are extremely concerned,” the TTPA said, adding “coming out of this, we believe that it is time to broaden dialogue with the state and our private sector partners in an effort to ensure that issues like the ones being discussed are minimal or wholly non-existent”.

(Jamaica Observer)