Remainder of 2016 AG report to be examined by PAC on Monday

The Public Account Committee will meet on Monday at 10:00 hours to examine several agencies as listed in 2016 Auditor General report. The Committee which met today in the Chambers of Public Building dealt with “various housekeeping” issues, among them how the committee will examine and deal with a “backlog” of reports and issues pending since the last committee’s meeting in 2018.

Chairman of the PAC David Patterson said that the committee decided to deal with the remaining agencies from the 2016, about 20 such agencies while 2017-2019 would be combined and examined, “We will examine the first three agencies, the Guyana Defence Force, Foreign Affairs and Public Infrastructure,” Patterson said.

He said too that once the committee meets next week, it will examine the time spent on examining the agencies and whether it will meet twice a week to clear the backlog before the end of 2021. Patterson is the former Minister of Public Infrastructure said does not have any issues if he has to recuse himself as Chairman when the accounts of that ministry are being examined. Patterson said he since asked the Clerk of the National Assembly for any precedence to guide him.

Meanwhile, Member of the Committee and Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Governance Gail Teixeira said that the temporary schedule to examine the remaining of the 2016 report is about six months, “we are going to try to expedite that,” she said.

Today’s meeting while being held in the Chamber of Public Building saw all of the members adhering to physical distancing in keeping with the COVID-19 guidelines, only one member, Minister of Infrastructure Juan Edghill joined the meeting virtually. Also in attendance was Auditor General Deodat Sharma and Finance Secretary Sukrishnalall Pasha.