The police investigations into alleged fraud in the operations of City Hall are ongoing while three senior officers allegedly linked to irregularities remain on-duty despite calls by members of the City Council for them to be sent on leave. Deputy Mayor of Georgetown Patricia Chase-Green yesterday told Stabroek News that following the Keith Burrowes report, she and Mayor Hamilton Green opted to write to the Local Government Ministers Ganga Persaud and Norman Whittaker, requesting that the Town Clerk Yonette Pluck-Cort, City Treasurer Andrew Meredith and the City Engineer Gregory Erskine all be sent on annual leave to facilitate an in-house investigation.
This letter, along with a follow-up letter, went unanswered by the ministers.
Minister Persaud yesterday told this newspaper that the police have started their investigation but he was not able to give an update. “I know that there is an investigation that is going on at City Hall that involves all staff. The police have commenced their investigation and [I] wish them luck,” he said.
A recent probe of the city’s operations suggested major fraud, including “phantom” workers on the payroll, payments to front companies and abuse of its assets.
“Keith Burrowes on his own could not send the three officers on leave, it had to come to council [and] so it came and based on his recommendations, we wrote to the Minister requesting that the persons implicated be sent on leave to facilitate an internal investigation,” Chase-Green, meanwhile, said.
She explained that they were made aware of Minister Persaud’s decision to have the officers stay on the job by way of media reports. “The Minister responded through the media, both electronic and print, that they will not be sent on leave, that he wants them to be present to assist with the investigation. The minister ruled on the matter of the officers going on leave,” she said.
She further stated that while the council has the power to send the officers on annual leave, which is due to them, the minister is against this move. She noted that this issue is up for discussion.
“I read in the Chronicle that the police have completed their preliminary investigation but no report of that has come to us, it would have most likely gone to the Ministry of Local Government. I have not received any official document that an investigation has even started but I did hear the Minister say that,” Chase-Green added.
