– Lall to decide today whether Town Clerk, City Treasurer should be sent on leaveSweeping changes are being recommended for the City Treasurer’s Department of the Mayor and City Council following a damaging report which suggested widespread fraud and irregularities there.According to the report,NBA Jerseys From China, systems were in some cases deliberately bypassed and authority misused, with fraud highly evident.In January, Mayor Hamilton Green had written the Auditor-General requesting an investigation into the department. Investigations into alleged breaches of systems were also requested.On Tuesday, following a discussion on the completed report, City Hall passed a motion to send Town Clerk Beulah Williams and City Treasurer Roderick Edinboro on leave; and Minister of Local Government, Kellawan Lall, is set to make a decision on this as early as today.Yesterday, a delegation that included Mayor Hamilton Green and Deputy Mayor Robert Williams met with Minister Lall to discuss the damning report.Speaking with Kaieteur News shortly after the meeting, the minister disclosed that a team was set up to discuss the report,Bobby Doerr Jersey, with initial recommendations likely to be made to him as soon as today.A decision on whether to send the Town Clerk and City Treasurer on immediate leave is also likely today.Wages and salariesThe explosive report dwelt in length on the system used to pay salaries and wages, noting that promotions were not in accordance with systems in place.“The Auditor Office recommends that the City Treasurer and Town Clerk desist from implementing ad hoc arrangements and adhere to the human resources policies in place to ensure that every promotion is fair, that the process is transparent,Wholesale MLB Jerseys 2018, that the best suited candidate is selected, and that the Council receives value for its money with every promotion.”The audit also found two officers were given raises by the City Treasurer and Town Clerk, but neither had increased or additional responsibilities to warrant these increases.“The Audit Office recommends that appropriate disciplinary action be taken against the officers responsible for the approval of this increase, and all future financial matters with respect to salary increases, or any recommendations for salary increases, be taken to the Full Council for approval.”The auditors found that one officer was updating the Pay Changes register, verifying its accuracy and updating the payroll database. The City Treasurer is tasked with monitoring the Council’s accounting system.However, “due to his negligence, the Pay Changes register has not been properly maintained, changes made are unauthorized, and there exists no formal procedure for the implementation of changes and recording of the same in this register,” the report said.One evidence of this was the fact that the Accounting Manager received leave money when he had no leave due. Another glaring factor was that loans were given but no deductions made from salaries as repayment.“With respect to the processing of the payroll, the verification of the accuracy of the amount contained therein and the printing of certifying of same, the City Treasurer was once again negligent and careless in the execution of his duties, which resulted in financial losses to the Council.The Audit Office recommends the implementation of proper systems and controls, with adequate segregation of duties and effective supervision to ensure that accurate information is inputted into the database for the processing of the payroll.”The payment of responsibility allowances for two officers in excess of that which was approved by the Full Council, and the continuous acting by an officer beyond the period which was approved, for which she was also paid, clearly indicated the City Treasurer’s disregard for authority and adherence to rules and procedures, the report stressed.Further, one of the officers was overpaid acting allowance during the period she was on leave, and could not have been entitled to this.“Based on all of the above breaches of procedure and violations of any established controls and inappropriate and unacceptable financial practices, the Audit Office recommends that the City Treasurer be relieved of duties and the officer overpaid refund the amount overpaid to her.”Leave paymentThe report recommended that,NFL Jerseys China, at the beginning of the year, a Leave Roster be prepared for senior staff to proceed on leave, to avoid problems.The accommodation of the payment in lieu of leave in the payroll under the column “loss of pay,” when this column was specifically designed for amounts that would be deducted from person’s salary, is a clear indication that the software for the payroll has been manipulated, the report concluded.Advances, loans According to the Auditor-General, it is clear that the granting of salary advances and loans and their repayment were done in an ad-hoc manner and do not follow any formal procedures or criteria, and there is no system in place to monitor the repayment of these advances and loans.“The Audit Office recommends that proper systems be implemented for the granting of loans and advances and the repayment of same.“In addition, current records should be properly updated, all officers be requested to repay amounts outstanding, and appropriate disciplinary action be taken against the officers responsible for granting these advances and those responsible for the record keeping.”Bank reconciliation The failure to properly reconcile bank accounts can lead to fraud and irregularities being perpetrated, the report pointed out.“The reconciliation prepared by the Council has not been checked or certified as being accurate. In addition, from the information obtained and examined for the bank account, it is obvious that the money is not being banked promptly, and the City Treasurer is unable to clarify when and if such sums, recorded as deposits in transit, were banked or put to other use.”This, the report said, again highlights the lax supervision of the City Treasurer with respect to the finances of the Council.“The Audit Office recommends that all bank accounts be reconciled promptly, and the reconciliation be checked and certified, and the amounts recorded as deposits in transit be investigated immediately, and all stale-dated cheques be written back to the cash book.”Rates and TaxesThe audit found that the Council had hired a consultant for five years to specifically develop general rates software. It is obvious that the software is not working properly.“As a result, we are unable to determine if rate payers are paying the correct amounts, or if they are being billed accurately.”Further, the consultant’s terms of reference did not specify his deliverables,Cheap Hockey Jerseys 2019, and the unavailability of a manual for the operation of the software “clearly indicates the imprudent way the City Treasurer’s Department is being managed,NFL Jerseys China, and the sanctioning of the consultant holding the Council at ransom, whereby only he could understand the operations of the system and attempt to correct any problems when these arise.”The Audit Office recommended that all contracts entered with consultants should be properly monitored and should clearly specify the deliverables and the time period for delivery,Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale, and include a penalty clause for any failure to deliver.
