Millions of dollars deducted from staff of the Georgetown City Council have not been remitted to their pension schemes.
Ewort Adams, Deputy Managing Director of Insurance Brokers Guyana Limited, told the Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into the city’s operations that they have not received a pension remittance from the city since February, 2017.
The city now owes approximately $14.5 million for the period March, 2017 to September 28, 2018 based his calculation on the last submission of the council in February, 2017, which was $776,523 and the assumption that every other month would have incurred similar contributions since no one has been added to the plan since.
“It is worrying to me and to workers since it means if someone resigns they will not receive their full pension…it is monies deducted from employees’ salaries on a monthly basis and not remitted,” Adams stated.
He also noted that the council is in arrears for Motor and Fire Insurance to the tune of $9,566,304 for a period beginning 21st February, 2017 for motor vehicles and from December, 2017 for fire.
Adams explained that his attempts to have the sums remitted have been met with a “royal runaround” from Deputy Town Clerk Sharon Munroe-Harry and acting City Treasurer John Douglas.
He noted that Munroe-Harry had promised to have the amounts liquidated by making a payment of one million a week but this was not realized. His next visit to council saw him directed to Douglas, who asked that he return twice. On his second visit to Douglas, he was asked to see Munroe-Harry but that meeting did not result in any payments either.
His last visit to the council was on Thursday.
Asked to offer his opinion on the reason the council has failed to makes these payments, Adams noted that “the council doesn’t have money and have their priorities in the wrong order.”
“You need to ensure monies deducted from employees’ salaries are used for what they are intended,” he stressed, explaining that he is also concerned with the fact that the pension scheme is not registered as required by law.
Despite having been summoned by the Commissioner of Insurance and having been sent numerous letters, the Town Clerk has not acted in what Adams referred to as a clear lack of care.
“Instructions can be given to have the plan wind up…if this occurs all members should get back their contributions and City Council’s matching contributions…,” he explained.
Adams’ company is under commission by Guyana and Trinidad Mutual Group of Insurance Companies (GTM) and GCIS Inc to collect from City Hall remitted funds and disperse same to the two companies.
He explained that up until 2016, motor vehicle and fire insurance payments were made every six months, while pension remittances were done every month. He noted that he is not satisfied with the way council is currently run.
According to the insurance broker, from time to time, the council has approached them for assistance in reconstituting their own records.
“In terms of the motor vehicles they would’ve asked us to tell them which vehicles were owned during a certain period,” he said.
The CoI, which is conducting public hearings at the Critchlow Labour College, is being led by retired judge Cecil Kennard into the administration and operations of the Georgetown Mayor and City Council, following numerous complaints to the Local Government Commission.
