‘Deeper we dig, worse it gets’- PAC hears of malpractices in Reg. #5

Tensions flared during a meeting of the Public Account Committee (PAC) on Monday as members of the commission zeroed in on payment discrepancies flagged by the 2019 Auditor General’s report into the financial management of Region Five.

In his report, Auditor General Deodat Sharma said 31 payment vouchers for drugs, totalling $3.8 million, had bill dates before the requisition to purchase date.

This means that drugs were supplied to the region even before the regional administration officially indicated it needed those supplies.

Government Parliamentarian and Chief Whip, Gail Teixeira said the revelation was most worrying.

“… items were received in February but the request to pay was made in September or October,” she disclosed.

According to her, if supplies are not available or have run out, the regional health authorities must inform the regional administration of the deficiency and that the regional administration must then make a request to purchase those supplies.

But this procedure, the PAC heard, was not followed and answers on what caused the malpractice were not forthcoming.

So Teixeira said, “The deeper we dig, the worse it gets.”

In light of the worrying situation, Texeira called for a special audit to determine whether this supply and payment scenario was an anomaly or the standard procedure in the region.

She wasn’t the only one who found the matter unacceptable.

Government Parliamentarian Juan Edghill made it clear that the financial laws of Guyana do not allow the government to take any items on credit. He also said no public officer can request supplies without first providing proper documentation.

Opposition Parliamentarians Ganesh Mahipaul and Juretha Fernandes also lamented what transpired but they said the PAC should be empowered to sanction errant officers who mismanage public funds.

“We need to find ways of fixing these breaches,” Fernandes said.