A large percentage of the public officials who have so far submitted declarations of their assets and liabilities will soon be asked to submit additional particulars, Chairman of the Integrity Commission Kumar Doraisami disclosed yesterday.
“…[The] majority of them will have to supply more particulars in respect to their assets,” Doraisami told Stabroek News.
He said over the last few weeks, he and fellow commissioners—attorney Rosemary Benjamin-Noble and Pandit Rabindranath Persaud—have been examining a growing pile of declarations forms.
So far, the commission has made three lists of non-compliant officials public and many of them have since submitted their forms. Officials would have also submitted their forms prior to the commencement of the publication of names. The most recent list identifies regional officials who have not complied with their obligations under the Integrity Commission Act.
According to the Integrity Commission Act, every person who is a person in public life, not being a member of the Commission, is required to file a declaration every year on or before June 30th and in cases where such persons cease to be a person in public life, within 30 days from the date on which the person ceases to be a person in public life.
“A declaration under subsection (I) or (2) shall give full, true and complete particulars of the assets and liabilities as on the relevant date, and the income during a period of twelve months immediately prior to the relevant date, of the person filling the declaration (whether the assets were held by that person in his own name or in the name of any other person) and of the spouse and children of such person to the extent to which such person has knowledge of the same,” it further states.
While noting that the commission has not completed its review of all the submissions, Doraisami stressed that based on what they have seen thus far, “there are issues.” Doraisami explained that the commission wants more particulars in a case where, for example, a property is mentioned. “We don’t know the acquisition cost. We don’t know the value now, so we will need those things in order to make an assessment of their (the properties’) worth,” he added.
He also said the letters requesting the additional information are being drafted and should be finalised and sent out to the respective declarants soon.
Additionally, he said that in the coming year the commission is looking to hire investigators. “In my estimation, we need at least ten,” he noted, before adding that at the moment the commission is looking at its budgetary allocations. “We want to have investigators [but] we haven’t had money for that. We are now trying to budget for that because without investigators we are not really going anywhere,” he explained.
Stabroek News was unable to ascertain the amount of declarations received thus far and the number outstanding.
Doraisami said that while the most recent list of published identified non-compliant regional officials, there are other categories of public officials still outstanding. The publications of those names, he said, will be determined when he and his fellow commissioners meet again.
Defaulting regional officials
The most recent list was published in the Official Gazette on December 8th and included errant regional officials in all ten administrative regions.
Listed under Region One were Brentnol Ashley, Regional Chairman; Sarah Browne- Regional Vice Chairman; Tikaram Bisesar, Regional Executive Officer; Cerdel McWatt, Regional Health Officer (ag); and Raul Boyer, Engineer.
Regional Executive Officer Rupert Hopkinson was the only errant official listed for Region Two.
Listed for Region Three were Sheik Mohamed Inshan Ayube, Regional Vice-Chairman, Denis Jaikaran, Regional Executive Officer; Shameer Shahid, Assistant Regional Executive Officer; Kathlene Elizabeth Armstrong, Assistant Hospital Administrator; Elaine Hamilton, Principal Assistant Secretary (F); Anesta Douglas, Regional Education Officer; Ravendranauth Doodnauth, Regional Health Officer, Vaughn Solomon, Regional Engineer; Ganesh Mahipaul, Regional Information Officer; Shanganan Singh, Senior Superintendent of Works; Parramdeo Persaud, Senior Superintendent of Works 1; and Mavis Elizabeth Roberts-Harris, Senior Personnel Officer/Principal Personnel Officer (ag).
For Region Four, listed as failing to submit declarations are Genevieve Allen, Regional Chairman; Earl Lambert, Regional Vice-Chairman; Pauline Lucas, Regional Executive Officer; Ramnarine Singh, Assistant Regional Executive Officer; Tiffany Harvey, Regional Education Officer (ag); Elon Austin, Regional Engineer; Quincy Jones, Regional Health Officer; Sharon Pantlitz, Principal Assistant Secretary (F); Guyanan Basdeo, Principal Personnel Officer; Kestine Garnett, Regional Environmental Health Officer; Hazel Smith Lowe, Medical Officer; Rickford Profitt, District Development Officer 11; Nicola Fullington, Chief Accountant (ag); Sharon Redmond, Craft Production and Design Officer; and Grace Vyphuis, Craft Production and Design Officer
Listed for Region Five are Rion Peters, Regional Vice-Chairman; Ovid Morrision, Regional Executive Officer; Janice Whyte, Expenditure Planning & Management Analyst Officer; Amrit Brijnandan, Chief Accountant; Dhanpall Sukha, Regional Engineer; Delton Benjamin, Superintendent of Works and Deon Lyn Lewis, Regional Health Officer (ag)
For Region Six, those listed are: Denis Deroop, Regional Vice-Chairman; Kim Williams-Stephen, Regional Executive Officer; Claude Henry, JP – Deputy Regional Executive Officer; Bishan Dalip, Engineer; Nolan France, Engineer; Rahullah Ali, Senior Superintendent of Works; Volika Jaikishun, Regional Education Officer; Jevaughn Stephen, Director, Health Services; and Vinashri Khirodhar, Medical Super-intendent.
Listed for Region Seven are Roderick Edinroro, Regional Executive Officer; Deyon Seecharran, Assistant Regional Executive Officer; Akbar Chindu, Regional Education Officer (ag); Edward Sagala, Regional Health Officer; Monica Erving, EPMA; Marcia December, Registry Supervisor; and Merlene Ferrier, Hospital Administra-tor.
On the list for Region Eight are Bonaventure Fredericks, Regional Chairman; Headley Pio – Regional Vice-Chairman; Carl Parker, Regional Executive Officer; Gavin Gounga, Deputy Regional Executive Officer; Oswald Junor, Assistant Regional Executive Officer, Joseph Patterson, Regional Engineer; Rabindra Singh, Regional Education Officer; Dr. Mario Kanhai, Regional Health Officer; Henaku Addo, Livestock Officer; John Roth King, District Development Officer and Debbie Collins, Chief Accountant.
Listed for Region Nine are Karl Singh, Regional Vice Chairman; Kerwin Ward, Regional Executive Officer; Althea Fitzpatrick, Assistant Regional Executive Officer; Debra Rampersaud; Assistant Secretary (Finance); Renick Marslow, Regional Engineer; Collis Nicholson, Senior Superintendent of Works; Kateri Joseph, Regional Education Officer (ag); Dr. Stephan Gravesande, Regional Health Officer (ag); Dr. Illona Spencer – Medical Superintendent; and Bharat Persaud, Hospital Administrator.
Listed under Region Ten are Renis Morian, Regional Chairman; Elroy Adolph, Regional Vice-Chairman; Orrin Gordon, JP – Regional Executive Officer; Maylene Stephen, Deputy Regional Executive Officer; Leola Narine, Assistant Regional Executive Officer; Dolette Powers, Principal Assistant Secretary (F); Clive Peters, Civil Engineer; Pansy Armstrong – Regional Health Officer; and Marcia Paddy- Andrews, Regional Education Officer.
The other two lists were published in November. The first contained 87 names, inclusive of 15 ministers, the Speaker and opposition Members of Parliament, while the second contained the names of 80 defaulting Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) officials.
The law requires that the names of the defaulters be published in the Official Gazette and a daily newspaper.
The Act also states that the Commission or the President, as the case may be, shall receive, examine and retain all declarations and documents filed with it or him under the Act; and make such enquiries as it or he considers necessary in order to verify or determine the accuracy of the financial affairs, as stated in the declarations of persons who are required to file declarations under the Act.
It states that those officials who fail to submit their declarations or submit declarations that are false or incomplete shall be liable, on summary conviction, to “a fine of twenty-five thousand dollars and to imprisonment for a term of not less than six months nor more than one year, and where the offence involves the non-disclosure, by the declarant, of property, which should have been disclosed in the declaration, the magistrate convicting the person shall order the person to make full disclosure of the property within a given time and on failure to comply with the order of the magistrate within the given time, the said offence shall be deemed to be a continuing offence and the person shall be liable to a further fine of ten thousand dollars for each day on which the offence continues.”
