Auditor General (AG), Deodat Sharma has confirmed that his office is yet to receive 80 percent of the documents needed for a special investigation into the financial affairs of the Mayor and City Council (M&CC).
Sharma told the Guyana Standard that he has only received documents in relation to deductions and amnesty for rates and taxes. The AG stressed that the crucial information he wants to get his hands on relates to the role of the former Town Clerk, Royston King. Sharma also wants information on how payments were prepared by the Treasurer’s Office too.
The AG said that his audit stems from the report of the Local Government Commission’s inquiry into M&CC. The report notes that King was guilty of gross misconduct, mismanagement of resources, and abuse of office.
The inquiry, among other things, looked at the expenditure of $200 million that was transferred to the M&CC for the restoration of Georgetown. Sharma, in his 2017 report, said that the payment vouchers and other related documents were not presented for audit examination.
