The Alliance For Change (AFC) yesterday blasted the government over the 12 meetings of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament which have been cancelled because PPP/C MPs have not turned up.
Opposition Member of Parliament, Juretha Fernandes during the AFC’s weekly press conference stated that the growing lack of accountability and oversight is more serious now than ever before in Guyana “as the government’s failure to ensure proper checks and balances in financial management is the leading cause of corruption, mismanagement of public funds and the loss of trust in government institutions.”
She added that it is imperative that a government plays its role in institutions responsible for financial oversight, particularly the parliamentary committees. She charged that the PAC has been “under attack” since the PPP/C returned to government “starting from the removal of the chair of the PAC, David Patterson, then to the amendment of the standing order to change the quorum of the PAC.”
She said that her party had warned against those actions and today the reasons for such are being witnessed, “since the amendment to the standing order that requires three members present to have a quorum to now requiring that two members from government, two from the opposition and a chair must be present to constitute a quorum, the PAC meeting has been canceled twelve times.”
Fernandes noted that the cancellations of those meetings were all done on the account of the absence of the PPP/C members thereby preventing a quorum
She stressed, that “the functioning of the PAC is crucial to ensuring financial oversight and it is concerning that the PAC has not been meeting regularly, especially with an accumulated backlog of three years of the auditor general’s report yet to be examined.”
She further stressed that the PAC is a critical part of ensuring accountability and transparency in the government’s financial management with is essential for good governance, and pointed out that it is important that the committee meets regularly to examine the reports to ensure that any irregularities or misuse of public funds are identified and addressed promptly. “The Committee must fulfill its duty to the people of Guyana and ensure that public resources are being used for the benefit of the nation.”
Fernandes then called on citizens, the media, and members of civil society to remain vigilant and actively monitor government spending. “Citizens must also demand access to information about government’s finances and hold elected officials accountable for their actions”, she declared.
In a letter in the March 27th issue of Stabroek News, Chairman of the PAC, Jermaine Figueira said “it is absolutely unacceptable and outrageous that the Public Accounts Committee, for the third consecutive week, will not be meeting on its statutory meeting day due to the government members’ unavailability to attend. This is a blatant disregard for the responsibilities they were elected to uphold on behalf of the people of Guyana.
“The government’s consistent failure to show up and do the work they were elected to do is a microcosm of the unacceptable reality of many other committees of the National Assembly where committees just don’t meet”, he said.
