Govt.’s $M advances from Contingencies Fund for debate next week

Aug 05, 2016 News

Finance Minister Winston Jordan yesterday presented to the National Assembly, Financial Paper Number One, which dealt with the Contingencies Fund advances on the Current and Capital Estimates totaling some $931M. That total

Finance Minister Winston Jordan

dealt with expenses covering the period January 1 to July 28, last.
He also laid in the National Assembly, Financial Paper Number Two which was essentially a Supplementary Provision on the Current and Capital Estimates totaling $2,089,699,085.
Jordan proposed to the House that both papers be considered by members next Monday, which is the final sitting before the National Assembly heads into a period of recess. That period would normally last for two months.
According to Financial Paper One, an advancement in the amount of $63M was made on the Fund in order to facilitate the rental to New GPC for the storage of pharmaceuticals for the period March to June 2016, as well as payment of rental to Linden Holding Company as per Cabinet decision for July 2016 and security deposit amounting to $25M.
There was also a $406M advance made on the Fund to facilitate the completion of the D’Urban Park Development Project which was used for the 50th Anniversary celebrations.
The abuse of the Contingencies Fund is an issue that has been well documented by the country’s Auditor General, Deodat Sharma.
In one of his reports, Sharma pointed to the abuse of amounts totaling over $550M drawn from the Fund and utilized to meet expenditures that did not meet the eligibility criteria as defined in the laws. In his 2012 report, he said that $95.661M in advances was illegally drawn from the Fund.
For the year 2013, he reported that $510M was withdrawn from the Contingencies Fund which did not meet the specified criteria. The 2014 report once again flagged the inappropriate use of the Fund under the previous administration, as $962M was withdrawn without meeting the specified criteria.
Over the years, the abuse of the Contingencies Fund was a topical issue for A Partnership for National Unity and the Alliance For Change when they served as the Parliamentary opposition.
AFC Leader Khemraj Ramjattan had emphasized on several occasions that the National Assembly is the first device or mechanism for which emergency advances can be protected from abuse.
The politician had asserted, “The (PPP) has been abusing its understanding of the criteria of an emergency under the Fiscal Management and Accountability Act. When we run to the Fund it is only to be used for emergency cases, like if there is a serious flood in Mahaicony and we need to remove citizens. Money would be used in that case.”
The Public Security Minister was also one who constantly called for sanctions to be imposed against former Finance Minister, Dr. Ashni Singh, for his abuse of the Contingencies Fund.

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