Latest update December 4th, 2024 2:40 AM
Subvention to GINA is immoral, criminal – Nagamootoo
– PAC Chairman expresses concern over this latest revelation
Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), Carl Greenidge, has said that the Committee examined three sectors
Moses Nagamootoo, AFC Vice Chairman
during its last meeting on Monday. The sectors included the Office of the President and the Ministry of Education.
The Committee has finally completed its perusal of the Auditor General’s 2010 and 2011 reports and is now examining his 2012 report.
With reference to the Government Information Agency (GINA), Greenidge said yesterday, “We found that this entity has still been receiving money but its audits are not up-to-date. There is a backlog of audited financial statements that are not before the National Assembly.
“They were unable to say why this was the case. And that has to be worrying. This is a rather controversial agency not only because of its level of unprofessionalism but because it acts as the propaganda arm of the government.”
He continued, “GINA has missing audited financial reports for the years 2001-2007 and for 2010 and 2011. The last time it laid a report was in 2009 and that is worrying.
“Its Permanent Secretary, Omar Shariff, was unable to explain why this was the case.”
Greenidge said that he was alarmed that while the political opposition would have withheld its support for the approval of funds via the national budget, it was revealed that (GINA) was still receiving monies and even in that capacity the entity was still far behind in the audited financial statements.
He argued that this should have caused the Ministry of Finance to be hesitant in its further disbursement of funds. He is concerned that considering “its track record” it was still funded.
Alliance For Change Vice Chairman, Moses Nagamootoo said, “We are totally against subventions for this agency and any other agency that operates as though it is the propaganda arm of the government. It’s immoral and criminal to fund a propaganda machine whose statements aren’t in order.
“In any decent democracy, such action would be met with jail.”
As it relates to other matters under the Office of the President, the PAC Chairman noted that it has not moved the Police Guard Service to being under the Ministry of Home Affairs or under the Office of the President.
He said, “It is not a local organization and it should be placed under one of the umbrellas. Because it is receiving monies
Carl Greenidge,
PAC Chairman
as ‘contribution to local organization’ and that is money given as a lump sum which they don’t have to account for.
“It is tantamount to giving money to an orphanage. They don’t have to account for that money but that is not the situation with the Police Guard Service. It is not that kind of organization. It should fall under the ambit of the Ministry of Home Affairs and that action has not been taken as yet.”
“I asked the Auditor General and the Finance Secretary to explain and both were unable to say why this is still happening. All they said essentially was that they are looking at it and I told them that that is not satisfactory enough.”
Additionally, the Committee had also noted that in the Ministry of Education, there is still the problem of overpayment to contractors in addition to some trivial administrative issues.
“There are some trivial matters with regard to the Ministry of Education which sometimes takes several years to solve. They keep reappearing over and over in the Auditor General’s reports. Trivial matters should not reach the level of the Public Accounts Committee.
“Overpayment to contractors is another constant problem. There are cases where contractors are paid before the work is completed and I told the Auditor General to surcharge the officer who authorizes the payment because it seems that’s the only way they are going to stop this.”
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