Rasbert Turner, Gleaner Writer

Spanish Town, St. Catherine:

Members of the media were barred yesterday from a special meeting of the St. Catherine Parish Council, organised to discuss an audit report exposing irregularities at the council, before it descended into chaos and had to be cut short.

The meeting had been convened to discuss the recent findings by auditors, hired by the Ministry of Local Government, that the council had gone against regulation and procurement guidelines in handing out several contracts without the prior approval of the contracts committee.

However, an attempt to gain entry to the council building was blocked by security personnel who claimed they were acting under instructions to keep the media out of the meeting.

While monitoring developments from outside the building, journalists could hear angry councillors shouting at each other in the meeting room on the second floor.

The shouting match continued for about an hour before the meeting ended abruptly with several councillors hurriedly walking out. People's National Party Councillor Ralston Wilson, of the Old Harbour division, and the Jamaica Labour Party's Norris Grant, of the Crescent division, told the media who remained gathered outside that they and their colleagues were disturbed by the allegations being levelled at the council and that some members needed more time to look over the 20-page audit report which highlighted the irregularities.

"We nuh get as much time and them have sinting a hide inna di documents," Mr. Wilson told journalists.

Time for review

Spanish Town Mayor Dr. Andrew Wheatley, the chairman of the council, told The Gleaner that as a result of the councillors' concerns, they would be given until Wednesday to familiarise themselves with the document before another meeting is held to discuss the matter thoroughly. The business of the council, he said, has to be transparent.

Meanwhile, Minister of Local Government, Dean Peart, will make a statement within a week on the recent audits at a number of parish councils.

Last week, Mr. Peart gave instructions that the police be called in to investigate wrongdoing at the St. Catherine Parish Council.