NFMU head denies corruption allegations, Telecoms Ministry seeks legal advice

Sep 20, 2016 News

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By Abena Rockcliffe-Campbell
The Ministry of Public Telecommunications is seeking legal advice on how to deal with the findings of

a forensic audit into the affairs of the National Frequency Management Unit (NFMU) and the responses given by those implicated.
Minister of Public Telecommunications, Cathy Hughes, recently told Kaieteur News that Head of the NFMU, Valmiki Singh, had furnished her with a statement in an effort to set the record straight on a number of shady actions that implicated him during his management of the Unit.
Hughes said that she was always concerned about the findings of the report which was prepared by the auditors attached to Ram and McRae, Chartered Accountants but wanted to ensure due process.
The Minister said, “Strong allegations were made in the audit report and I thought it was only fair that the party and the agency be given an opportunity to respond. I could not, in good conscience, automatically consider dismissing the individual on information that was in there.”
Hughes stated, “I met with him (Singh) and he said that there were a lot of inaccuracies in the report.”
The Minister said that the inaccuracies are documented in the statement he gave to her, and she will provide the media with Singh’s response.
She said that she will also be handing the statement to Minister within the Ministry of Finance, Jaipaul Sharma, the Audit Office and other colleagues in government.
Hughes said that she is seeking advice as to whether “criminal charges may or may not need to be laid based on the findings of the audit.”
She said that the challenge is that the forensic audit goes only to a certain extent.

“Then there is the problem of the explanation given. Explanations were given in the context that these officials work for a previous government that government issued instructions some for actions on specific thing which are today documented in the audit as not acceptable.”
Hughes said that while she is pursuing the matter, “I am not a lawyer, the police force, so I do not feel as if I am in a position to make a decision.”
The Minister said that she is looking to revamp the unit to ensure that this kind of thing does nto take place again.
The NFMU forensic audit report had cited numerous areas where Singh was found in breach of financial laws.
Based on its examination of the employees’ personal records at NFMU, forensic auditors found for example, that there was “gross abuse” by Singh, regarding the annual leave system.
In the audit report, the forensic team from Ram and McRae said that records show that Singh sought and obtained payment for leave not taken over an 11-year period.
The auditors noted that the NFMU Head did so less than two weeks before the May 11, 2015 elections. At that time, they said that he wrote a letter to Dr. Roger Luncheon, former Head of the Presidential Secretariat, requesting payment for what he claimed to be 326 leave days accumulated over the years between January, 2004 and December 2014.
They said that attached to the letter was a computation of Mr. Singh’s outstanding leave days which was prepared by the NFMU’s Finance Controller.
The auditors however, noted that the unavailability of documented application and approval of the leave carryover prevented any effort to verify the accuracy of the number of accumulated leave days.
The forensic auditing team said that under the Public Service Rules, leave may be deferred and added to the following year’s vacation. The deferral was “required in writing”.
Dr. Luncheon approved Mr. Singh’s request via letter dated April 30, 2015 and a total of $6.7 million was remitted to Mr. Singh after income tax; a total of $2.9 million was deducted from the gross amount of $9.6 million.
The auditors said that it is considered dangerous to the organization as well as unhealthy for individuals, particularly those in a position of trust and responsibility, not to take their annual leave. They therefore recommended that this practice be discontinued forthwith.
They also recommended that the services of the Accountant be otherwise utilized or transferred since his only responsibility was to manage the expenses of other government entities, a practice which the auditors believe should cease.
In another instance, it appeared as though Singh thought that he had more power than was actually allocated to him as Head of the National Frequency Management Unit. Auditors said that perhaps, the organizational structure of the entity contributed to him acting outside of his authority in various instances.
The auditors noted that while the Minister who has oversight for the NFMU, is the person designated to determine the remuneration of persons employed, after consultation with the relevant union, Singh who was only the Managing Director, arbitrarily determined the salaries of his workers.
The auditors noted that Singh acted ultra vires, that is, outside of his legal power in many instances including establishing remuneration packages for employees.

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