(Trinidad Express) A three-year-old etiquette company with limited experience and a link to Government’s primary advertising agency has secured lucrative sponsorships from four state companies totalling almost $2 million to teach children good manners.
State companies—the Telecommunications Services of Trinidad and Tobago (TSTT), the National Gas Company (NGC), the National Lotteries Control Board (NLCB) and the Petroleum Company of Trinidad and Tobago (Petrotrin) —have made financial commitments to sponsor the company, Sash Consulting Ltd.
Sash, owned by entrepreneur Shauna Huggins, has partnered with the Ministry of Education for its Character Education and Citizenry Development Programme.
The programme was launched last Monday at the Hilton Trinidad, St Ann’s by Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar.
TSTT, the Sunday Express learnt, has committed the lion’s share of money to the programme—TT$1 million over the next three years.
The NGC and Petrotrin have committed TT$30,000 a month for the next year and the NLCB has committed TT$27,700 a month.
NLCB chairman Mitra Mahabir confirmed to the Sunday Express that the NLCB had committed to Sash Consulting TT$250,000 over a nine-month period.
He said the NLCB has already made several contributions. The fifth state company to sponsor Sash is Caribbean New Media Group.
CNMG’s chief executive Ken Ali told the Sunday Express yesterday that CNMG was asked by the Ministry of Education to partner with the Ross Advertising Agency for the broadcast medium of the initiative.
“We have not had to put out any money but we have benefitted financially. We were retained by Ross Advertising to do commercials which were one minute commercials and 15-minute features. We were further employed, that is C TV and 91.1 Talk City, at market rate to have the programmes air on our station,” Ali told the Sunday Express.
Asked for clarification on the agency, whether it was indeed Ross Advertising and not Sash Consulting, Ali responded: “Our relationship was and is with Ross Advertising. And we’ve benefited from it.”
An internet search of Sash’s website comes up with the hyperlink www.sashconsulting.rossadvertisingcaribbean.com.
Ross Advertising is owned by advertising executive Erine Ross. Ross handles advertising accounts for TSTT’s Blink brand and handled Petrotrin’s Jubilee oil find for the state’s energy company.
According to his website he also handles advertising for other state companies such as Caribbean Airlines and the Housing Development Corporation.
