I am not my daughter’s keeper- Rohee

Jun 07, 2016 News

-distances self from daughter’s controversial appointment

The forensic audit into the National Communications Network (NCN) unveiled a nest of cronyism,

Rima Rohee-Paul

which auditors say dominated the employment policies of the state-run corporation during the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) tenure.
Auditors highlighted the fact that a special media monitoring unit was composed of friends and family members of top PPP officials. Included in the group, which was paid over $20M from NCN, was Rima Rohee-Paul, the daughter of then Home Affairs Minister Clement Rohee.
When asked about the situation, at the PPP’s weekly press conference, General Secretary Rohee took pains to absolve himself from any involvement with his daughter’s appointment. He stressed that he was not his daughter’s keeper.
“Why should I be worried? Any Guyanese is free to apply for a job anywhere, whether in the public or private sector. She may have applied for a job. She got a job. She was paid, I notice what the newspapers said, millions of dollars. But I think the salary was about $40,000.”
Rohee intimated that the figures may have been inflated but when reminded that it was a collective tally, he demurred. In fact, auditors indicated that Rohee-Paul’s take home from 2011 to May 2015 was $2.4M.
“I’m not my daughter’s keeper. She’s a grown woman. And she can apply anywhere for a job. And that’s it. She never asked me to write a recommendation for her to get a job.”
Asked whether he had sought any explanation from his daughter about the contents of the articles or audit report, Rohee said he had not. In fact the General Secretary, who is considered the head of the party, has consistently claimed he has not read the forensic audit reports, which implicate a number of figures connected with his party.

Former Home Affairs Minister, Clement Rohee

In their detailed report, the auditors attached to Parmesar, Chartered Accountants said that a total of 35 media monitors were employed by NCN during the period 2011 to May 2015 during which the state company expended $28,813,756 on the said personnel.
According to the report, these employees were contracted by NCN to monitor the transmission of television /radio programmes for content and providing report or analysis for each day of the week on a 24 hour basis. They were also asked to prepare a report on the dates monitored which will be supported by the relevant tapes/reports for verification.
The auditors said that while these employees were contracted by NCN, they were not located at NCN neither did they perform any duties for NCN or report to any official at NCN. The auditors found that the media monitors were reporting directly to PPP Information Liaison, Kwame Mc Coy at Office of the President.
Mc Coy would write to the NCN Human Resources Manager when changes were required. On a monthly basis, the auditors said that all employees were required to submit an invoice for payment to NCN. The auditors said that employees were required to uplift payments from the NCN Head Office.

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2 thoughts on “I am not my daughter’s keeper- Rohee”

Gtloyal June 7, 2016 at 8:22 am

Everyone has a right to work so Rohee for once is right. Had his daughter been under his direct supervision then we could have spoken of nepotism or something. Or maybe if he had recommended her.
The article claims that “Auditors highlighted the fact that a special media monitoring unit was composed of friends and family members of top PPP officials.” Why did they do that? Was that arrangement contrary to the law? Were those in the unit related to each other? Wasn’t it a legitimate unit? Can’t family and relatives of high ranking party officials work for the government? If they had to report to someone out of the department that hired them then that, I guess, was per instruction and according to how things functioned in said department. The article claims that they worked and reported to someone. The people worked for their money. Morally it may not have been the best of arrangements but … was any law broken?
Those of us who support the present administration may criticize these things but we must also accept that if no law was broken then it was not necessarily wrong, thus nothing can be done.
BORAPORK June 7, 2016 at 3:42 pm

These people worked under false pretences and should have been paid by the PPP/C. A bill should now be sent to Freedom House for reimbursement.

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