THE Local Government Commission (LGC) in a press statement issued on Monday sought to establish that the agency is “not closed and remains in operation”, notwithstanding its current state of lack of finances following an impasse with the Ministry of Communities (MoC).

“The LGC has observed and is alarmed and concerned with an article carried in sections of the media over the weekend which stated: “The LGC shuts down”. The LGC wishes to categorically state that the Commission is not closed and remains in operation,” the statement said.

“The LGC wishes to assure the Local Government Organs and the general public that the Commission remains open to serve the needs of its stakeholders. Please be reminded that the LGC can be contacted on telephone numbers 223-5620/21 or at our Secretariat located at 30 Eping Avenue, Bel Air Park, Georgetown.”

It was last Friday that the LGC held a press conference and reading from a prepared statement, Chairman of the Commission, Mortimer Mingo, declared that the Commission was “effectively shut down” over the financial situation whereby salaries have not been paid since December 14, 2018, and the Commission had no money to pay its bills, including utilities and rent.

“The LGC… operations are effectively shut down by virtue of the refusal of the Permanent Secretary of the MoC to countersign the documents that would allow for finances to be released to the constitutional body,” Mingo read from the prepared statement.

The LGC receives its finances via a subvention under the MoC. After requesting some $305 million in its 2019 budget submission last year, the LGC was allocated a 2019 subvention of $137 million, with $124 million for current expenditure and $13 million for capital expenditure.

However, no money has been released to the LGC for the year, with the MoC contending that the 2019 current expenditures submitted by the LGC is above the amount allocated to the Commission in its 2019 budgetary allocation.

Hence, the budgeted money will not be enough to cover the LGC current expenditures from January 1, 2019, to December 31, 2019.

The MoC’s defence is that unless the LGC submits a 2019 budget that fits the $124 million allocation for current expenditures to release money to the LGC [it] would be in violation of the Fiscal Management and Accountability (FMAA) Act which governs spending at the ministry.

In their response, the LGC said they have submitted a budget within the limits since February 7.