Public accounts fail audit
(CNS): The Cayman public is still in the dark when it comes to the details of how the government is collecting and spending tax dollars. In his latest review on the state of government's reporting on public finances Auditor General Alastair Swarbrick reveals that his office is unable to audit government's entire accounts because of the poor quality of information supplied. Many reports from ministries, portfolios and government companies that have been completed and audited have never been tabled in the Legislative Assembly, he said, and as a result they are unavailable to the public. Although Swarbrick tried to be positive about the improvements he has seen since he took office, such as more timely relevant information, he said government remains unaccountable to the people.
Although government had patted itself on the proverbial back last year for submitting consolidated accounts to Swarbrick's office and the premier has claimed on numerous occasions to have presided over an improvement in the standard of government accounting, this is in fact a far cry from the truth.
Swarbrick said at a media briefing on Thursday morning in connection with his latest review that while efforts were being made towards improving the timing and quality of information being submitted to his office, there was still a long way to go before there was any real transparency for the voting public.
“Government must be held to account on how it uses public money,” Swarbrick said, “but it isn't possible right now.” The progress being made has not yet translated to transparent accounts that can tell the man in the street exactly how government has collected or spent public money, he said. Government is still unable to produce a full set of consolidated accounts that Swarbrick's team is able to audit.
In seven months Cayman's tax paying electorate will go to the polls once again with no real idea about what government has done with more than $2 billion it has collected and spent over the last four financial years.
Swarbrick pointed to the same problems that have been highlighted by his office since the first report undertaken by his predecessor, Dan Duguay, in 2008. A lack of leadership, poor systems in place and a lack of supporting documentation remain as acute today as they did when the problem was first brought to the public's attention more than four years ago.
The auditor said that the failure of the relevant ministers to lay the completed reports on the table of the Legislative Assembly was also undermining the process and the little progress that was being made. Swarbrick said that more than 70 reports that have been finished in some cases for as much as a year have never seen the light of day.
“Accountability delayed is accountability denied,' Swarbrick said. “The tabling of the reports is the final and most significant part of the process,” he added.
While trying to be positive about the improvements he had seen, he acknowledged that the government's state of financial accountability reporting was still of a poor standard.
Even with the advances made with the individual government entity reports, because those do not contain important elements such as executive transactions and balances of government, such as coercive revenues, transfer payments, executive expenses, loans and executive assets, the public is not getting the complete picture.
In short, despite task forces, oversight committees, assistance from FCO experts, direction from the Deputy Governor's Office, scrutiny by the Public Accounts Committee and the regular reports from the auditor general, government is still unable to account for how it is collecting and spending public cash.
See latest report below.
Category: Politics
Is there any law that allows "THE PEOPLE" of this island to sue [past and sitting] legislators for the wastage of, and misappropriation of "OUR" money? If so, then we should force them to pay back every red cent!
I suggest that we get a "COURT ORDER" to withhold their pensions as payment for all the money "THEY" [both parties] have misappropriated and/or wasted over the last twelve years [see AGs report] until "EVERY DOLLAR IS REPAID!
Maybe then the 'NEXT GROUP" we put in office "WILL GET THE MESSAGE" !
A Petition capping MLA salaries would be an effective option.
… suprise suprise!
The auditor general is wrong ! we the public are not in the dark a blind man could see that the money is going on personal interest and political favors not on the country.
Put it on 'em donkey face. Who the jackass.
So when will we know what the REAL deficit was in 2009? We all know that Mac picked 81 million out of his fedora. Can we also please know exactly how much of that was spent between election day and the 30th of June?
Isn't it amazing that our financial secretary can come out after the election and say that that is the deficit and we the people could use that information and vote out one political team to put another in. And now this party is throwing out financial numbers at us. Can we believe anything concerning the exact amout of the financial problem in cayman?
Its funny to see our book keeper, hmmn sorry, "accountant" swarm about the office having official documents signed,one year later. And interestingly enough, my director and deputy director is helping cover up the mess. On the other hand, im in trouble for proposing that managment manage in a fair,professional and efficent way. Another day, same pathetic leaders!
Interesting to see that the Ministries of Finance, Tourism and Development are among the few that have not submitted financial statements. Who is in charge of those ministries again?
You can't just call this incompetence anymmore, this is more like a criminal conspiracy to hide systemic corruption and theft.
We don't trust government to use our money properly and they think we're hiding it. Sometimes we do that's offshore banking and investment in a nutshell. But in this case and I hope someone has detected the irony it is the government that is hiding money and making shady claims and investments…. and we are the one's looking for it.
I didn't think anything changed. I don't think Caymanian leadership can change. Its what they are and what they want to be. No work ethic (at all). No accountability (for anything). and no clue as to how to get anything done right. Is there anything that they do that does not have anything to do with filling their pockets that they have been successful at? Anything at all? Caymanian voters, Caymans civil service, and Caymanian leadership are removeing themselves from Cayman islands society and the very people they need to keep it going. What is the inevitable outcome of this???? Anyone?
The change wiil only come with a new generation. Entitlement mentality of current CIG will not change. Educated and ambitious young Caymanian with leadership qualities who are in their 20s is the way to go. Just hope they were instilled right moral values.
When the world wants to see why rules should be followed thay have only to look at what happened to Grand Cayman. All that money and no accountability.
In the real world the buck would stop with the Financial Secretary, his deputies, the department CFO’s and their deputies and assistant but also each Chief Officer in every department, Statutory Authority, HOD and every member of the Ministry of Finance who take home big salaries and produce about 25% of what they are paid to do.
The Deputy Governor and each Minister in Cabinet better wake up to the harsh facts that at least 100 ‘Accountants’ on government payroll need to be fired or encouraged to resign due to poor performance. The fact that they are now discussing a bonus program for government is so funny I’m nearly in tears.
They also talk about cuts yet it’s obvious that the high earners are not doing their jobs so the talk is to cut the low end worker instead. How about cutting all the useless managers, senior managers, CO’s, accountants and the technical experts in the Ministry of Finance who are an embarrassment to every qualified Caymanian accountant that ever worked on a spreadsheet. It’s simple “Fire them for cause” no one should be guaranteed a job for life just because your are family or Caymanian or voted for a politician who rewards incompetence to cover up their own failings and poor management abilities.
What does "CPA" mena again?
I am also keen to know what opinions were given in respect of the Audit Office's own financial statements – which are examined by a private sector auditing firm.
I could not find any information about the Audit Office's own accounts, in the Auditor General's Report.
We, of course, expect them to have received an unqualified opinion.
Can someone from the Audit Office let the public know what opinion the Office received over the years?
Did the Press ask this at the Press Conference with the Audit Office staff?
I would have thought that since the Audit Office spouts the need for transparency, it would have included information about itself in the Report.
I would be happy to be told that I am wrong and the information can be found on paragraph xx of the Report: otherwise, I welcome a reply from the Audit Office.
CNS: The OAG has responded to this as follows: "For 2011/12, the Office has submitted its accounts along with its annual report to the Public Accounts Committee well before the 31 October 2012 deadline and is expecting them to be tabled at the next sitting of the Legislative Assembly as required by the PMFL.
"For 2010/11, the audit of the financial statements was completed by 31 October 2011 and the annual report submitted to the Public Accounts Committee. For the years 2004/05 through 2009/10, the annual reports including the financial statements are on the website at: http://www.auditorgeneral.gov.ky/corporatepublications1
"For each of the years, 2004/05 through 2009/10, the accounts were audited by PwC and include unqualified opinions on the financial statements. For 2010/11 and 2011/12, as the documents are not public, the opinions will be made public along with the reports once they are tabled in the Legislative Assembly."
Given the complete lack of any political will to sort this out, and given that this position has been unchanged for year, it should be assumed that there is significant fraud and corruption embedded in the system until the civl service and the polticians shown any inclination to get it sorted.
Great so far eleven comments and not a single name. Anyone with balls out there? Of course I see no PPM comments either
It comes as no surprise as to what the Auditor General says and as I see it no one cares. The apathy of the public is unbelievable .
Can no one stand up against the Powers that be and challenge them on the accounting and the findings of the AG?
The elections are not too far away and no one will challenge this world traveller who cannot deal with the local problems that confront our islands. Surely to goodness someone will take this madman on.
Chris,
Elections round the corner, the doles are coming, e'rybody want some, hence no names on the posts.
The civil service knows where the real power is and could give a stih about what Swarbrick thinks. And there will soon be giving themselves 10 percent raises every year for there excellent work product. You know it!
There is a tremendous lack of leadership, but the problem is not at the elected levels.
Managers are appointed and supervisors are not trained to be supervisors. There are no standards, nor dicipline. Then entire civil service is mired in mediocrity, yet I doubt the average employee feels it, or wishes to perform at such low levels.
The front line needs training by the supervisors and the supervisors need proper management training, and their managers need to be held accountable.
Start by creating a culture that arriving to work at 8:32 is not acceptable.
Start offering service to your customers, both internal and external by:
1/ answering the phone
2/ checking your messages and returning calls
3/ returning emails
Set some standards, move towards them, folks that can't should be progressively diciplined and ultimately, if need be terminated.
Government positions are viewed as jobs for life. They can be, but part of that agreement to tenure should be performance.
"…agreement to tenure should be performance…"
The key here is "should be". This is not a perfect world. Blood and cronyism are thicker than performance.
True, like other places on earth, Cayman has it's shae of this type of behavior.
Manager and Supervisors are not "appointed" as if they went through a vetting process, they are choosen by irrelevant factors like religion, fashion, race,personal relationships, bar room interviews…and then the more experienced employee who should have been appointed wastes most of thier time by edcuating their "superior" . If government would just put they right people in charge, you would probably find government could be just as efficeint if not more efficient than the private sector.
You also might find that creating measures like arriving to work at the same time, or that we are all wearing the same custumes is more of a a ploy set by incompetent and inexperienced manegement to maintain there unearned positions through irrelevant standards. We need smart and dynamic management that place above all other values transparency and communication skills so we dont continually end up with fakers and sophistry.
My goodness cns? Did you read the same report you published?
Good god. $2 billion unaccounted for in a country of 50,000 and all of us having to pay extra so that the looting can continue. It is actual daylight robbery. I truly think this is the beginning of the end for the Cayman Islands as a financial center.
A quarter of that $2 billion were subsidies for the Turtle-Farm to the tune of $10 million a year!
But no-one keeps records of how the money was spent, and no justifiable explanation, and so
no balancing of the accounts!
How about we claw back Joey's bar tab when the Turtle Farm was Bowswain's Beach?
The Caymanian people deserve more respect from their elected officials. I once worked for the Canadian government and I remember being told to think about every penny I spent on behalf of the Canadian government and to consider whether I would be comfortable with a follow up media interview on how / why the money was spent. We were taught to scrutinize everything and practice due diligence.
I am encouraged because the government is finally taking "baby steps" towards financial accountability.
I am discouraged because the government has still miles and miles to cover. Baby steps must be replaced with long, purposful strides.
Soon come.
Also, I strongly believe that there are well placed people who will actively sabotage the auditor general's efforts. Corruption, like a cockroach, does not like the strong light of financial accountability. (Remember gasboy, Remember the Turtle Farm director who was helping himself to an extra $5,000 per month with no checks and balances).
Don't forget the director's bar tab at Boswain's beach.
Our elected officials are forever evolving in finding ways to screw us all and prosper in personal financial gain whilst doing so. They continually play and gamble with our money and rightly so, for there seems to be no consequence or accountabilty for anyone in power. They lie and twist the truth, making and simultaenously bending laws as they see fit. Unfortunately I've never spent much of my time on politics until now. I used my youth as an excuse to not worry, placing trust and in so leaving the woes of the land to the mature 'so called' leaders of the day. Yet it is becoming increasingly obvious that the manner in which government conducts itself is utterly ludicrous, to say the least. Whats so hard in operating my government in an open and honest manner or like that of a private enterprise? Are we as a people meer sheep? To be guided blindly and unchallenged?
My country is in problems far exceeding that of which the layman would comprehend. Yet what saddens me most is the fact that there is no remedy in sight and we simply allow it. We have a proven "shady" character single handedly responsible for the pillars of our nation. A man who has continually proven himself to be of poor character, ethics, grammar and judgement, yet he remains. Im sorry Cayman, but wtf! Is this really the best we can offer as our leader?? I am truly and whole heartedly ashamed of my premier and am pretty sure I dont stand alone with such sentiments. Gone are the days of iron men and wooden ships.
Regards,
SMDH
Raise your hand if you are surprised.
Give them no money until an accurate report is given of where the last amount went – in every department, ministry and aspect of government spending.
We know that there is no accountability at all within the Civil Service. Heck there are no meaningful accounts either.
But seriously, does the buck stop at anyone's desk? Any one? Any one at all?
Keep up your work Auditor General. You are the ONLY one keeping us from a complete slide to the third world.
It doesnt get worse than this!
Remember that you are talking about $2 billion here! Yes $2bn 0f your money that is being spent for what? You dont know because the departments concerned cannot account for it, or worse, wont account for it because nobody makes them do it.
Here you have the second of two good men trying to tell you that someone doesnt want you to know how your money is being spent. The last was fired, sorry, not reappointed because he was saying so. The alternative view is that the departments concerned are trying to account properly, but failing. Well in that case why isnt someone getting fired for failing? The only answer that is plausible is that those at the top dont care,or worse, want this obfuscation, if so ask yourself why. I have wonder if it is because they have something to hide, if I am wrong. then let the records be audited and I will happily apologise, but I doubt that will be necessary.
Now, consider the failure to pass the Financial Responsibility law, could that be connected? I think so, get very worried Cayman!