Former Regional Executive Officer (REO) of Region Eight (Potaro-Siparuni) Rafel Downes said his sacking came on the heels of his administration’s mismanagement of the Region’s affairs and his inability to answer to the parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC), for which he takes full 
responsibility.
The Region Eight REO told Guyana Times on Wednesday that he has paid the price for his “inexperience” by losing his job. “PAC is a very important structure and it is the only way to safeguard taxpayers’ money and it is not something that should be taken lightly at all. I am very displeased with the way we handle the Region and we really did not adhere to the structure of the PAC had demanded of us,” he added.
Downes explained that he appeared before the PAC and was unable to explain the administration’s spending and sanctions were recommended against him. “You don’t mean to procrastinate, but it happens and then it’s the last couple months before PAC you realise that for whatever reason it is inadequate. I take full responsibility basically. If you ever check statistics, we are the most short-staffed region in the country and the budget has grown; basically, it is my tardiness with the whole PAC thing that made me I pay the penalty of such inefficiency,” he said.
He admitted that the regional administration’s relationship with contractors was the major reason for his sacking. In April, the REO appeared before the PAC, chaired by Opposition parliamentarian Irfaan Ali, and he was questioned on the overpayment of contractors to which he could not provide any answer. Downes was advised to issue the defaulting contractors with letters from the Region’s attorney in an effort to recover the monies owed.
He told this publication that he was only able to secure letters of commitment from the contractors about two days ago. He added that on the issue of overpayment that many of the contractors claimed that they were owed monies dating years back, to which he paid.
“It is true to say that a few of these contractors aren’t even around, and one was awarded a contract because he was the only one who bid for it and we were aware that he had some overpayment and we know that if they are going to collect an award letter, more or less they were going to sign a commitment. It is, more or less, a lack of experience on my part on my first year to actually see the import of actually dealing with PAC matters, priority as so to speak,” he opined.
On Monday, Downes was relieved of his duties because of incompetence.
