Former Region One engineer approves $1M overpayment to contractor

Mar 04, 2014 News

-REO refuses to take fall

An oversight committee of Parliament with responsibility of the public accounts has denied that it is a toothless poodle with no powers to make changes.
The Public Accounts Committee (PAC), which is open to the media, has been widely seen in recent years as pushing for changes to improve the public accounting system.
The body, comprising of both Government and Opposition, would examine red-flags raised by the Auditor General’s annual reports,

Region One officials during the Public Accounts Committee session yesterday.

questioning state officials and key staffers on lapses of procedures. From tender procedures to overpayments, PAC has been asking questions. It has been suspected that issues like overpayments were all linked to corruption.
Yesterday, senior officials of Region One (Barima/Waini) were before the body during an examination of the 2011 Auditor General report.
One of several issues found by auditors in 2011 was that a contractor was overpaid $1M to add a new section to the Regional Administration Office at Mabaruma. With the works ongoing right next to the where the regional officials work every day, PAC found it unbelievable that monies could be paid for work not yet done. The contract had been awarded to B. Boodhoo General Construction with the name of the engineer who signed off the works given as Sy Rodriguez.
Regional Executive Officer (REO), Nigel Fisher, said that the contractor cannot now be located and the engineer is currently attached to another Ministry.
However, PAC’s member, Gail Teixeira, was not happy with this answer, pointing out that it is possible to check at the Registry for details of the business officials.
The PAC found it alarming that despite issues of overpayments, and there are many, accounting officers of the Regions and the Ministries seemed to have no “alacrity” in going after the guilty parties.
The Region One officials were also slammed for the unauthorized use of funds to complete the building which was reportedly taken from “savings”.
According to Teixeira, somebody has to be penalized for approving works not complete. The REO, when pushed, said he was not serving in that position in 2011, and was not willing to repay.
Teixeria made it clear that Permanent Secretaries and REOs must be prepared to take responsibility for lapses or “face the music”.
Fisher and the Region’s officials will have three months to report back to the PAC on its actions.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Local Government, which is charged with managing the Regions, said it has started penalizing accounting officers with gratuities being withheld in some cases for REOs.
Responding to Member of Parliament Jaipaul Sharma’s warnings that PAC should not be seen as a “toothless poodle”, Manzoor Nadir insisted that the oversight body’s work was being judged in the court of public opinion. He believed that the system has its “many checks and balances”.
He cautioned young engineers to be careful in carrying out their mandates.