Opposition leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar has expressed deep concern over what she said was the Finance Minister’s latest dangerous attack on the Auditor General, Mrs. Jaiwantie Ramdass in the House of Representatives on Friday 24th May 2024.
In a release, Persad-Bissessar said: Imbert’s startling comments represent his unnecessary and highly questionable perpetuation of the damaging fiasco that has emerged due to his initial refusal to lay the Auditor General’s 2023 Report in Parliament on April 26, 2024, as per his Constitutional duty.
She said the 2023 report notably points to the Government’s shocking inability to account for $2.6 billion in revenue and several other alarming fiscal discrepancies.
The Auditor General has also contended that the Finance Ministry attempted to backdate its financial statements, prompting Imbert to questionably appoint a team to probe this damning contention.
Persad-Bissessar said the fact is that this entire imbroglio has its genesis in the Finance Ministry’s incompetence and negligence, and Imbert’s questionable facilitation of the same.
She said had the officials submitted the correct accounts within the statutory deadline, none of this would have happened.
“The Auditor General was simply doing her job according to best practice” she said.
“Now, the matter is before the courts in an unprecedented battle between the independent office of the Auditor General and the Government in the persons of Imbert and Attorney General Reginald Armour.”
Persad-Bissessar said: “In these circumstances, Imbert’s self-serving statements, made under the cover of Parliamentary privilege, can only be described as a case of the Minister being judge, jury, and executioner.”
“Further, his targeted attack on the Auditor General’s character and independence constitutes a dangerous abuse of Parliamentary privilege and borders on a breach of the subjudice standing order.”
She said: “Ironically, Imbert’s misuse of parliamentary privilege overshadowed his self-appointed investigative team, given that he articulated his biased views and conclusions while the team is still conducting its probe and yet to deliver its findings.”
“By Imbert’s own actions, he has effectively diminished the relevance and credibility of this team, and deeply compromised its investigation.”
She said from his statement, it can be reasonably inferred that Imbert:
· Is dictating the team’s pace and practically signaling what they should find and write.
· Has breached the Auditor General’s right to due process and a fair hearing.
· Has prematurely made a public pronouncement on the matter in a desperate attempt to deflect attention from the colossal errors made by his Ministry.
· Has seriously diminished the Government’s credibility
She said Imbert’s latest statement once more confirms that this investigation is a sham since he has now pronounced on every facet of the purported investigation.
When the report is completed, it will be submitted to Imbert.
“Yet, having already demonstrated his bias against the Auditor General, its findings can effectively be dismissed as tainted and consequently declared null and void.
Notably, the revenue and backdating discrepancies are not the only damning elements of the Auditor General’s 2023 Report.”
Persad-Bissessar said some of What they did not want you to know when they did not lay the Report on April 26, 2024:
“As I have been pointing out in the past month, the report shows that the Government has spent billions of taxpayers’ money, which they could not account for.
There are details about questionable payments, suspicious contracts, a lack of supporting documents, and non-existent trading companies in the State’s accounting practices.”
“The report notes that the Ministry of Finance spent over $386 million without supporting documentation for the last fiscal year, representing more than a third of the total sum not properly accounted for.”
Other findings include:
· non-compliance with legal requirements, rules and regulations, and other directives; weaknesses in systems of internal control
· improper maintenance of accounting books and records; and breach of rights under section 116(2) of the Constitution for the Auditor General or the authorized persons to have access to all books, records, returns, and other documents relating to the public accounts.”
· Treasury Division made 17 payments totaling $27,173,786.13, where cheque numbers were not seen recorded in the payment vouchers and eight instances where cheque numbers were not entered on the schedule of accounts.
· cheque numbers were incorrectly recorded on the payment vouchers and schedule of accounts for 65 payments totaling $227,920,704.96
· Government’s $73 million spending on a Fiscal Incentive Programme that cannot be accounted for
· $24.7 million was spent on contracting services without supporting documents.
· the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) spent $6.3 million and cannot account for it
· TTPost collected $74,581,487.50 on behalf of the Ministry of Works and Transport via the fixed-penalty traffic ticketing system but could not account for it
· Absence of a contract valued at over $34 million at the judiciary.
· A government MP is being paid about $752,000 for the rental of a building.
And much more.
She said: “In light of these damning facts, Imbert cannot continue to say that he is awaiting the findings of a biased investigation.”
“Imbert and the Government, by extension, must, therefore, immediately end their calculated harassment, personal attacks, and hounding of the Auditor General and allow her to carry out her duties and functions independently, as mandated by the Constitution of Trinidad and Tobago.”
Further, Imbert must immediately end this political charade and stop this so-called, now highly compromised, self -commissioned investigation into the Auditor General.
She said failure to do so will undoubtedly perpetuate a dangerous imbroglio that has the potential to destabilize Trinidad and Tobago’s already fragile economy and global economic reputation to the point of deleterious collapse.