Tyrone Reid, Enterprise Reporter

Auditor General Adrian Strachan - file

Spurred by another string of unlawful payments in his last annual report that cost the country in excess of $50 million, the man mandated by the Constitution to audit the financial affairs of public entities - the Auditor General - has called for the prosecution of public officials whose actions result in a loss to the public purse.

In his annual report for the financial year ended March 31, 2006, Auditor General Adrian Strachan highlighted as one of his major areas of concern, the perennial practice of public entities spending money from the public purse in breach of existing regulations.

Mr. Strachan explained that once his administration is satisfied that negligence of an officer or officers resulted in the improper payment, the matter is reported to the financial secretary, who, "under the law can impose a financial charge against such persons up to the amount of the loss suffered".

Monetary surcharges not enough

While Mr. Strachan revealed that monetary surcharges, which are financial sanctions designed to recover the improper payments from the responsible officer, have been levied against public officials in the past, he believes that these will not suffice.

"In some cases, that is what I believe would be appropriate - heavy fines or jail time," Mr. Strachan told The Gleaner. "What we need is something that will get people to stop doing some of the things that they are doing. Whatever will get them to stop, thatis what we are striving for."

After years of combing through the books of public entities and uncovering many breaches, Mr. Strachan believes that the country needs more legal measures to stop shady spending.

"Quite definitely ... It is my view that we need to have appropriate legal sanctions made available for dealing with officers in Government companies and statutory bodies whose negligence or breach of regulations results in improper payments," emphasised the Auditor General.

When contacted, Greg Christie, Contractor General, who is the watchdog of the country's contracts awards process, supported the call being made by Mr. Strachan. "We wholeheartedly support the position the Auditor General is taking. It is in sync with ours and it is long overdue," he declared.

Mr. Christie insisted that decisive and urgent action is needed on both the part of the Cabinet and the legislature to stem the current systemic and pervasive culture of breaching established guidelines.

While Mr. Strachan pointed out that sanctions exist in "certain limited areas" under the Public Bodies Management and Accountability Act, he described the provisions as an "uncertain and cumbersome process".

As a result, the Auditor General is asking for improvements to the legal framework "to impose the surcharge provision on not only central government employees but also those in statutory bodies and government companies". He added: "They (legislators) must bring in additional provisions to capture other areas, which can result in loss to the public purse."