–task force head
Acting Auditor General Deodat Sharma says the Task Force that President Bharrat Jagdeo set up on April 7, 2008 to investigate the Fidelity Investment Polar Beer duty scam doesn’t have on it any members of the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA).
In a statement yesterday, Sharma said: “I wish to state that the task force comprises representatives from three agencies, the Ministry of Finance, the Guyana Police Force and the Auditor General’s Office.
He said that in execution of its function it will from time to time require the assistance of senior GRA officers to provide the necessary explanations and clarifications on operational and procedural matters. “However, these persons do not form a part of the investigating team,” Sharma said.
He said that the Commissioner General of the GRA Khurshid Sattaur, has been tasked with the responsibility of facilitating the investigation by providing the necessary documents and staff as required by the task force to ensure maximum evidence is secured. Sattaur is not a part of the investigating team, Sharma stressed.
“The Task Force therefore sees these reports carried in the media as erroneous, misleading and designed to create mischief and (urges) persons to desist from engaging in such practices and allow the Task Force to perform its functions unhindered.”
As a result of the work of the investigative team, a number of staff members of the GRA have been sacked while other more senior officials have been sent on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigations.
