Transparency Institute Guyana Inc. (TIGI) yesterday sounded its alarm at the promotion of the Gitanjali Singh, the wife of Finance Minister Dr Ashni Singh, to Audit Director in the Auditor General’s Office, warning that it would undermine public confidence in the oversight body.
TIGI, the national contact of corruption watchdog Transparency International, is charging that Singh’s appointment gives rise to “a serious conflict of interest” in the eyes of the accounting profession and the public and it has urged President Donald Ramotar, the Auditor General and the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) to remedy the situation.
“As a result of this appointment, a critical role in the oversight of the financial statements of the country has been entrusted to the wife of the minister responsible for preparing them,” TIGI noted in a statement issued last evening, two days after the PPP/C members on the PAC, which has supervisory authority over senior appointments in the Auditor General’s Office, forced through the appointment of 11 staffers, including Singh. “TIGI is of the view that the retention of Mrs Singh as Audit Director is likely to adversely affect the credibility of the [Auditor General’s Office] and will undermine public confidence in such an important independent office created by the constitution – the supreme law of Guyana,” it said.
TIGI yesterday pointed out that the auditing process “by definition requires insulation from the subject of the audit.” However, it argued that the need for insulation was completely ignored by the appointment, which it said is likely to “undermine the effective performance and operation” of the Auditor General’s Office.
Further, both the Minister of Finance and his wife, it said, are bound by standards of professional conduct laid down by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (UK) and the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Guyana, which have rules relating to conflict of interest.
As a result, TIGI called on President Ramotar—who appoints the Auditor General—Sharma, and the PAC, to remedy this situation in order to ensure “good governance, greater transparency and enhanced accountability.”
The Auditor General’s Office, it noted, is mandated to uphold and preserve the highest standards of independence and integrity in the discharge of its constitutional functions. “The people of Guyana are entitled to expect that the [Auditor General’s Office] and, indeed, all public institutions to operate in accordance with the highest standards of professional and personal ethics,” it said, while adding that promotions and appointments to public office should eschew nepotism or the perception of nepotism. In this vein, TIGI advised Mrs Singh of “the possibility of taking the honourable and moral course of action” by declining the appointment.
TIGI also cautioned against “acting” appointments, saying they are inimical to the independent and fearless performance expected of public officers in the performance of their functions. With the Auditor General’s Office being headed by Sharma, who has been serving in an acting capacity for seven years, TIGI also called on President Ramotar to take appropriate measures to remedy the situation and appoint a substantive Auditor General after due consultations with key stakeholders.
