Shifting defaulting officials not helping situation – Gaskin

Musical chairs with Permanent Secretaries

In the wake of scandals highlighted by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) when digging through the Auditor General’s 2015 report, a former Presidential Advisor is questioning the internal accounting systems that let these financial improprieties occur.

According to Ramon Gaskin, the Government’s moving Permanent Secretaries from one ministry to the next when financial mismanagement occurs under their watch is also not helping the situation.

“Internal controls are very weak,” the economist said. “And they’re moving these people around all the time, and that is not helping. You need to have qualified, professional people who could handle the work of Permanent Secretary and people with integrity.”

Gaskin questioned the string of Permanent Secretaries and accounting officers who have either been sent off on leave or shifted to another ministry.

“We have a problem with the public service,” the economist stated. “It has to do with training, education, professionalism, integrity. They have a big problem there.”

Back in 2015, Vibert Welch was the Permanent Secretary in the Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs Ministry. He was subsequently moved to the Education Ministry. However, he has since become embroiled in controversy there.

Welch is currently in hot water for the use of public funds to build a guard hut at his private residence, which cost more than $500,000 to construct.

On Monday, the current Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs Ministry Permanent Secretary, Alfred King, was hauled over the proverbial coals during the PAC’s weekly sitting, which was abruptly brought to a halt when the accounting officer was unable to produce a breakdown of $47 million used at the Amerindian Hostel.

King’s almost one-hour interrogation by PAC Chairman Irfaan Ali was brought to a premature close when he was asked to provide a breakdown of the money used for dietary supplies at the Amerindian Hostel.

He was earlier unable to provide specific details of a $6.7 million contract with a Bourda Market greens vendor.

Asked to account for the remainder of the $47 million allocation used for dietary supplies in 2015, King told the PAC he would need 20 minutes since that information was at the office. Ali immediately suspended the proceedings, but on his return, the Permanent Secretary was still unable to provide a breakdown.

In 2015, King was not the PS at the Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs Ministry as Welch was.

One glaring discrepancy for which the Permanent Secretary was unable to provide ready answers related to a $2.5 million payment.

The Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs Ministry had prepared a voucher to make the payment to a Bourda Market vendor for the supply of fruits, greens, and vegetables.

The Committee heard that the voucher was prepared on December 15, 2015 for $251,000, but a cheque was actually made out to the supplier for $2.5 million and the Ministry to date has been unable to recover the total amount.

It was revealed that the voucher was inputted into the Government Integrated Financial Management System (IFMAS) on December 29 of that year in order to have the cheque cut before the end of the financial year.

The $2.5 million cheque was encashed in January the next year. The discrepancies raised concerning that supplier Devindra Sugrim were not limited to the overpayment.

In fact, King told the Committee that the supplier was based on institutional memory at the Ministry in the form of a register. This was also found not to be true.

King earlier told the Committee that the supplier was secured using a three quota system, but was unable to clearly inform the PAC how exactly the supplier was chosen by the Ministry.

The transaction raised eyebrows, even as King attempted to defend ‘shopping around’ using the three quotation system.