Latest update April 19th, 2024 12:59 AM
Sep 20, 2017 News
A senior Ministry of Finance official is the latest person to be questioned by the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) amidst continuing investigations.
Expected to be released on bail yesterday was Vladim Persaud, the Assistant Accountant General. He was reportedly performing the duties of Deputy Accountant General when ranks of SOCU picked him up yesterday at his Main Street office.
A number of lawyers visited him at SOCU’s headquarters, Camp Road, during his questioning yesterday. Other officials at the Ministry were questioned in recent days also.
The probes stemmed from a number of forensic audit reports conducted by selected accountants to examine the operations of state agencies leading up to the 2015 elections where the Coalition Government took the reins of the country, ending the 23-years rule of the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C).
Several of those reports were handed over by the Government to the police with the administration saying that the findings warrant more investigations.
The David Granger administration had vowed to investigate and charge anyone found to be stealing state funds.
A number of officials have been charged, among them former Public Service Minister, Dr. Jennifer Westford; former General Manager of the Guyana Rice Development Board, Jagnarine Singh, Deputy General Manager, Ricky Ramraj, rice farmers representative Dharamkumar Seeraj, and Board Members Nigel Dharamlall, Badrie Persaud and Prema Roopnarine.
Yesterday, there was evidence that another probe is gathering steam.
This has to do with the operations of the Lotto Fund.
Government, under the arrangements with the Canadian-owned Guyana Lottery Company, receives up to 24 per cent of the proceeds.
The monies are paid into a special account, the Lotto Fund, controlled by the Ministry of the Presidency and spent with the approval of Cabinet.
This prevailed prior to May 2015 with the current administration promising to have all the monies placed in the consolidated fund where all state monies are controlled by the National Assembly.
There have been questions about the spending of the fund by consecutive governments.
At the beginning of 2015, the fund reportedly held some $1.4 billion. It received a further $421 million that same year.
The Finance official reportedly prepared cheques and other payments from the Lotto Fund, on orders from the previous governments of the PPP/C.
SOCU’s investigations would have been centered on exactly where the monies were spent.
The monies were supposed to be sunk into social projects.
The Granger administration reportedly used part of the Lotto Funds to build the Durban Park stadium, behind the 1763 Monument.
SOCU, an arm of the police that deals with financial crimes, has more than 150 separate investigations running including ones involving the Guyana Gold Board, the National Industrial Commercial and Investments Limited (NICIL), among others.
Where is the BETTER MANAGEMENT/RENEGOTIATION OF THE OIL CONTRACTS you promised Jagdeo?
Apr 19, 2024
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