Latest update March 19th, 2024 12:59 AM
Dec 12, 2018 News
Deputy Director of the State Assets Recovery Agency (SARA), Aubrey Heath-Retmeyer, has refuted claims publicised by certain sections of the media that ‘SARA Director and assistant take home multimillion-dollar salaries.
The article alleged that the Director Dr. Clive Thomas and Deputy Director Heath-Retmeyer of the agency receive monthly salaries of $4.7M and $3.3M, respectively.
However, in his response yesterday Heath-Retmeyer noted, “Senior ministers do not even make $4M per month. I couldn’t see how someone could think that the Director of SARA and his assistant could be making $4M and $3M respectively,” he reasoned.
Heath-Retmeyer clarified that Director, Dr. Clive Thomas’ monthly salary with allowances totals $1,080,000. He further clarified his salary as Deputy Director is $780,000 per month with allowances.
The Deputy chided the publication noting that it was crafted without accurately reading the charts presented in the Committee of Supply of the National Assembly during the Consideration of the Budget 2019 Estimates of expenditure falling under the Ministry of Legal Affairs, on Monday.
He explained that the figures quoted in the news article are reflective of the emoluments when gratuity, vacation and other allowances are included and not the monthly salary as the article falsely claims.
The salaries of the SARA officials came to light after former Attorney General, Anil Nandlall, raised questions over a $285 million allocation under line item 6321, ‘subsidies and contributions to local organisations’ for the Ministry of Legal Affairs.
The article quoted Attorney General Basil Williams explaining was earmarked for SARA.
Williams was further quoted explaining that the breakdown of spending, — $225 million would be spent on wages and salaries for SARA employees in just one year.
Just a few weeks ago, SARA faced criticism for being in apparent breach of the law which says that it must have tabled in the National Assembly, its annual plan and Code of Practice.
In its comprehensive review of budget 2019, Ram and McRae Chartered Accountants firm pointed out that SARA is budgeted to receive $285 million, an increase of $25 million or 9.6%, from the $260 million it received in 2018.
Considering the substantial funds it is about to receive, Ram and McRae believes that the Agency should at least adhere to its reporting requirements.
“Like many other public bodies, SARA appears to have breached the law in respect of the duty to have its annual plan tabled in the National Assembly and the prerequisite steps to lay a Code of Practice and to have its report filed in the National Assembly.”
The firm is of the view that the Agency has clearly failed to live up to the hype and fanfare, which accompanied its establishment when it was expected to recover several billions of dollars of state assets each year.
It noted in its report that the Government may wish to consider scrapping the Agency altogether and assigning its functions and responsibilities to the Special Organized Crime Unit (SOCU) of the Guyana Police Force. SARA has declined to comment on the report.
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