The Georgetown City Council has come under fire recently for its non-cooperative attitude as it relates to providing answers to the relevant authorities tasked with ensuring that public finances are spent in an efficient, effective and transparent manner. Just a few days ago, Auditor General Deodat Sharma was forced to send a strong message to city officials that approaches would be made to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) if the level of cooperation that is needed to conduct such an exercise is not forthcoming from those mandated to provide same.
It was reported in the media that Sharma became frustrated after the accounting officer who was acting in place of the absent Treasurer of the Georgetown municipality was unable to provide the necessary answers with regard to City Hall’s monies during a recent hearing of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC). Even the Permanent Secretary attached to the Ministry of Communities complained of City Hall’s lack of cooperation when certain information was requested.
It was reported that the PAC met in the National Assembly last Monday, when McGarrell and accounting officers from various municipalities were made to give account for some $401 million in capital subventions. The Audit Office had found that as at December 31, 2016, $396.5 million was expended. It was revealed that from the start, City Hall’s financial status, how it spent almost $175 million and its failure to submit documentation posed a challenge to the PAC.
It could be recalled too that last year, the AG’s attempts to conduct an audit were stymied by documents not being provided. According to AG Sharma, at the time, there were a number of gaps that remained unfilled in the investigation. As is currently happening, during the final phase of the audit, the probe was stalled due to this lack of cooperation.
Several letter writers, commentators and politicians have been calling for the Government to commission a forensic audit regarding the operations of the Council in the interest of ensuring transparency and accountability. In addition to the parking meters scheme, there were several other projects which the city undertook which had caused stakeholders to ask questions.
For example, not long after the coalition Government took office, the M&CC, in collaboration with the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government, embarked on a massive city-wide clean-up campaign in Georgetown and its environs. While these efforts produced fairly good results regarding the general appearance of the city and its environs, the political Opposition and other stakeholders had raised several questions in relation to the contracts awarded to carry out the works, as the perception was that friends and party supporters were the main beneficiaries. To date, the relevant officials have not been very forthcoming regarding questions from the media in relation to the sums expended and the beneficiaries of the contracts.
Also, the mere fact that millions of taxpayers’ dollars are regularly used to bailout the city from its financial woes is another reason for a forensic audit to be carried out. The Government certainly cannot keep pumping public monies into the operations of City Hall without putting the necessary safeguards in place to ensure there are accountability and transparency at all levels of its operations.
We had stated before that there was much to be explained by past officials who were tasked with managing the affairs of the Council. For example, it is believed that millions of dollars in taxes for certain individuals were written off by the previous Council. There are also claims being made of breaches of the Environmental and City By-laws resulting in serious drainage, sewerage and parking problems. Then, there is the issue of the failure of the City Treasurer to collect millions of dollars in outstanding taxes and so on.
It is indeed encouraging to see that the AG’s Office has taken a firm position that it would no longer tolerate a non-cooperative attitude of city officials. Our hope is that this time around, those tasked with running the affairs of the city would work along with the auditors to ensure they have access to the necessary documents, etc, to carry out their duties unimpeded.
