Dear Editor,
I refer to the recent action by the Auditor General who supplied 11 names to the Public Accounts Committee of the Parliament of persons in the Audit Office who were acting, to be confirmed.
The public (letter writers), the newspapers and Transparency Institute Guyana Inc have all written on the matter of the appointment as Audit Director of Mr Ashni Singh’s wife, and what a significant conflict of interest it establishes that will undermine public confidence in the impartiality and independence of the Audit Office. I have told Mr Singh before that Mrs Singh is well qualified and she could apply for some other position in government where her presence does not create a conflict of interest.
I want to acknowledge the excellent letter written by Mr Earl John who has pointed out that this matter was passed by the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament without complying with the law, and I completely agree with him.
There is one important dimension to this matter which I have not seen ventilated and it is this: Mr Sharma is the acting Auditor General because according to the law he does not have the requisite qualifications to occupy that position, and by virtue of this fact it establishes a chain reaction in relation to many other acting appointments below him, including a person who is acting in his substantive position. Despite the fact, however, that they might meet the qualification criteria as set out in the law, in voting to confirm persons to these positions not only have the PPP members of the Public Accounts Committee violated the law but they are in fact appointing Sharma to the position of Auditor General, since one of the people appointed is filling his position as Audit Director. This alone negates this entire action.
The 11 persons who are acting cannot therefore be confirmed unless we address the matter of Mr Sharma acting as Auditor General. When we appoint a substantive Auditor General Mr Sharma will be returned to his substantive position, and only then can we attempt to fill all the other positions his acting upwards creates.
The PPP’s determination to have Mr Sharma as acting Auditor General and Ashni Singh’s wife confirmed in the Audit Office raises serious questions about their agenda; in view of these facts one can only draw the most adverse inferences about the PPP’s commitment to transparency, and the fear of exposure of corruption in government which is becoming clearer daily, compliments of our private media and the new parliamentary dispensation.
Yours faithfully,
Tony Vieira
Former member
of the PAC
