…Min Lawrence slams poor supervision

THE disappearance of a Seiko Track and Field Electronic System and one Start Gun RG valued at US$2,985 and US$159 respectively from the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport (Department of Culture) was on Monday brought under the microscope by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC).
Permanent Secretary, Melissa Tucker, was called upon to explain how $1.614M was expended for consultancy fees and $2.511M for airfare for which no evidence of tender board procedures was seen in the case of the missing items.
The Audit Office in its 2015 report noted that there was no evidence that the aforementioned items were received. As such, the Office recommended that the Ministry takes all necessary steps to bring closure to the matter.
A copy of a police report as it relates to the missing items was presented to the Audit Office in April 2017. Chairman of the PAC, Irfaan Ali questioned whether the Ministry was ever in possession of the times, to which Tucker replied in the affirmative.
She told the PAC that the items were not entered into an asset register. “When did you receive this item?” asked Ali. Tucker informed him that she was not in possession of the document which resulted in Ali warning those appearing before the Committee about being ill prepared. She was not the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry during the Audit Report period.
“I understand you are new, but these paragraphs beg this information, and you are not prepared…When did you receive it, where was it entered, where was it stored?” he continued. Tucker in a bid to ensure the PAC is provided with clarity, called on Mr Haywood, the Supplies Officer to answer questions.
Haywood told the Committee that contrary to observation made by the Audit Office, the two missing items were received. “The articles were received at the synthetic track; at that point there were no stores. I received the items…” he said. The Supplies Officer explained that the items were all supplied to the Leonora Synthetic Track where they were stored in a container. He said the only items missing from the container were the Seiko Track and Field Electronic System and one Start Gun RG.
Former Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Alfred King explained that “for good reason” two officers were appointed to oversee the process. He said the Deputy Permanent Secretary and Haywood. The container was sent to the Leonora Track and the identified officers were called upon to report on the items. But the explanations provided did not rest well with Juan Edghill,a PAC member. Edghill asked, “If the ministry received it, why were the items not entered into the assets register?” He was backed up by Ali who called for explanations on the matter which caused King to blame his juniors.

“At this time I can only say it was some level of delinquency,” said King.
But his attempt to cast blame on the appointed officers did not sit well with PAC member, Volda Lawrence who called him out immediately on the matter. “I want to differ with PS King…the stores officers are being blamed here… [But] the system provides for the checks and balances…supervisory check offs,” said Lawrence who then asked when the stock count and labeling of the items were done.
“Based on information received, the coding and marking was done during the period May-June 2016 after the stores would have been in place at the track,” said King who added that the items were received in February of the same year.
However, his statement was immediately corrected by Haywood who said the articles arrived late 2014 or early 2015. He said the stores was “set up in June or July 2015.” “That is when everything was taken into stores. A caretaker signed as receiving all items. I saw them. Mr October signed all documents as receiving,” said the Supplies Officer. This prompted the PAC Chairman to caution senior officers against “the passing of the buck.” “I don’t think we have accurate information. PS, by the end of this week provide accurate information,” instructed Ali.
Meanwhile, Lawrence noted that it is unacceptable for officers of the state to act in a callous manner. She said she hopes the said situation serves as a lesson to all within the public service. “Too often there is little or no emphasis on security of billions of dollars in items,” she said noting that often emphasis is placed elsewhere but not on storage and accountability.
She questioned why all mechanisms were not put in place from the time the items were procured. Additionally, PAC member Jermaine Figueira questioned whether the Department of Culture possesses adequate storage facilities. He was told by PS Tucker that there is sufficient storage at her Department.