AG observations on municipality… Inquiry ‘likely to be completed in 3 months’

Sep 03, 2008 News

The inquiry into the findings of the Auditor General (AG) Report of the City Municipality of 2007 is likely to be completed within three months or possibly before, allowing for clarity of the findings which suggest that there have been major financial improprieties at City Hall.

Commissioner of the Inquiry, Keith Burrowes, in an invited comment yesterday made this disclosure, even as he revealed that members of the commission, including: Secretary – Puran Persaud; Representatives of City Hall, Ranwell Jordan, Patricia Chase-Green and Premchand Dass; Trade Unionist Andrew Hicks and Brijlall Rampersaud, representing the Local Government Ministry, have been meeting as planned and the process has so far been favourable.

The members of the commission have already been able to meet twice to deliberate as the process moves apace, Burrowes said.

However, he related that there was a break in the inquiry recently because he had taken a brief vacation which he even cut short to facilitate the continuance of the process.

He pointed out though that since his appointment as chairman of the commission he had indicated that he would have needed to proceed on vacation and so had done so about two weeks ago, an action which, according to him, has in no way hampered the inquiry.

Burrowes further established that the commission has met since his return from vacation and every effort is being made to have the process be completed within a three-month timeframe, if not before.

Nonetheless, he asserted that no attempt will be engaged to speed up the process in order to guard against any instance of injustice against those officers who are at the centre of the investigation.

The AG report had extensively implicated the substantive Town Clerk, Beulah Williams and City Treasurer, Roderick Edinboro, who have both been sent on administrative leave, pending the inquiry.

Burrowes who was appointed about one month ago, as Commissioner, said that it is his intent to ensure that professionalism prevails throughout the inquiry, adding that the process will not be influenced by any individual at anytime.

And to ensure that all members are knowledgeable in every aspect of the investigation, Burrowes disclosed that much time has been spent perusing a series of reports, including that of the AG, as well as the Municipal and District Act Chapter 28:01.

There have so far been no challenges to the process, he revealed, pointing out that all the relevant persons identified to provide information for the inquiry have so far responded positively.

The Commissioner is slated to meet with staffers of the municipality in this regard on September 17 at City Hall. However, those staffers who are desirous of making written submissions can mail them to P.O. Box #10384, before September 15.

The commission of inquiry was established by the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development and the official appointment of Keith Burrowes was undertaken on August 4 last.

The members of the commission have been tasked with perusing the relative items in the AG report in question even as they obtain the assistance of knowledgeable persons in conducting the inquiry.

As a team, the commission is also expected to look into the irregularities identified in the report as they relate to: the office of the Town Clerk, the office of the City Treasurer, loans to members of staff and others, advances on salaries to members of staff, irregularities in rates collection, municipal bank accounts in commercial banks, and restructuring of municipal departments and operations.

According to Burrowes, as information on the findings become available, it will be officially published through the Government Information Agency.

City Mayor Hamilton Green said that he is hopeful that the process would come to a timely conclusion in order to bring some closure to the highlighted financial improprieties so that the council could be effectively managed.