By: Marvin Cato | HGP Nightly News |
Newly sworn-in Member of Parliament Sherod Duncan of the A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) has sharply criticized the government’s management of public funds, stating that the 2024 Auditor General’s Report exposes widespread financial mismanagement, weak internal controls, and a disregard for procurement laws in both the housing and security sectors.
Speaking with HGPTV Nightly News, MP Duncan pointed to several alarming findings from the report, including $95 million in overpayments for infrastructure works under the Ministry of Housing and Water in Regions Three and Four, as well as multiple instances of duplicate land allocations — where more than one person was assigned the same plot number.
“These are not trivial oversights but evidence of systemic mismanagement in a ministry entrusted with delivering the basic right to shelter,” Duncan said. “Guyana has lots of land, and every person entitled should have their own plot. Something is happening in the system that must be fixed.”
The Auditor General, Deodat Sharma, also noted that the average unit cost for a government house exceeded the approved ceiling by more than $1.8 million, and that the ministry’s management repeatedly failed to submit timely responses to audit queries.
Turning to the Ministry of Home Affairs, Duncan said the situation is equally troubling. The audit uncovered $1.4 billion in defective or delayed police station projects, $88 million in undelivered fire service equipment, and $136 million in community policing grants that lacked supporting financial reports.
“Such failures compromise public safety and erode public confidence in the very institutions sworn to protect citizens,” Duncan asserted. “At Home Affairs, advance payments for fire service equipment were made with no delivery records. Something is seriously wrong with that.”
The opposition MP has since called for the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) to be immediately convened to summon accounting officers from both ministries to explain the irregularities and outline corrective measures.
Duncan is also recommending the establishment of independent internal audit units in all high-spending ministries, with mandatory quarterly reporting to Parliament for greater transparency.
“I’m pressing for a Public Accounts Committee hearing that compels the Central Housing and Planning Authority to submit proper unit cost breakdowns and variation orders,” he added.
The revelations have reignited calls for stronger fiscal oversight and accountability mechanisms to ensure taxpayers’ money is managed with integrity and efficiency.
