By KHRISNA VIRGIL
Tribune Staff Reporter
kvirgil@tribunemedia.net
AFTER the conclusion of a lengthy forensic investigation into the operations of the National Insurance Board, government contracted auditors Grant Thornton Bahamas have determined that the total cost of their work is valued at $861,000.
And although the probe was expensive to conclude, NIB Minister Shane Gibson believes that officials have been given insight into the extent to which the Board’s systems were manipulated.
He spoke to reporters after both audit reports, covering allegations that suspended NIB Director Algernon Cargill and fired Chairman Gregory Moss levied against each other last year, were finally tabled in the House of Assembly yesterday.
“Audit is nothing new to NIB (and) hiring auditors is expensive,” he told reporters.
“Both reports are totalling over 600 pages plus we had a whole box with the appendices.
“They put in a lot of man hours and it’s unfortunate that we have to spend people’s money on something like this. But we just wanted to make sure that what was being said would accurately reflect what was going on at the Board.
“I am happy that we did ask for the forensic report because we not only got to find out what was done, but we found out how the system was manipulated to do it.
“So we are reviewing those processes to see how we could put safeguards in the system to make sure that moving forward, and the way that the system was being manipulated between 2008 and 2012, that we minimise the chances of it happening like that again.
“I think the Bahamian people should feel proud that we are working in their best interest,” he said.
When asked if tender clauses were breached in selecting the auditors to carry out the investigation, Mr Gibson said the law dictated that he was able to do what was best.
“Under section seven of the (National Insurance) Act, if you look at it, it said that the Minister shall appoint and so when he (Mr Cargill) talks about me breaching the tender exercise, what tender exercise? When he gave out all those electrical contracts. What tender exercise is he referring to? Couldn’t be the one that he looked at because he gave out all of those and he was only the director,” Mr Gibson said.
Comments
moncurcool 11 years, 5 months ago
And the reason we wasted this amount of money on a audit by a firm that no one really knows about is....? And the government have the stupidity to get up and say they need to introduce VAT cause they have no money? Stop wasting money with this kind of excessive and unnecessary spending.
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