Auditor General Deodat Sharma has directed that the Region Nine administration recover in excess of $12 million paid to a contractor for the upgrading of a section of the road at Culvert City, Central Rupununi.
According to the recently leaked 2018 Auditor General’s Report, a contract for the project was awarded by the Regional Tender Board in the sum of $13.105 million to the most responsive of eight bidders. Though the contractors received the full contract sum for completed works, at the time of audit a physical verification of the completed works, measurements and calculations revealed a significant overpayment of $12.262 million.
Though the contract provided for the upgrade of a total roadway length of 1,819 metres, at the time of audit work had only been started on 606 metres. “The contractor received full payment and the works were incomplete and abandoned with no equipment or personnel on site at the time of the physical verification,” the report stated.
Additionally, while the contractual duration for completion of the works expired since April 12th, 2018, the report said the works remained incomplete over a year and the Final Payment Certificate and the Completion Certificates were not signed by the Senior Superintendent of Works nor the Chairman of the Works Committee, certifying that the works were complete. “Only the Regional Executive Officer’s signature was on the valuation,” it said.
