The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The probe into the $51m COVID food assistance initiative will conclude that taxpayer funds were “used to the greatest effect” if it is unbiased, a governance reformer asserted yesterday.

Matt Aubry, the Organisation for Responsible Governance’s (ORG) executive director, told Tribune Business that the National Food Distribution Task Force and non-profit groups that used government monies to feed thousands of Bahamians at the pandemic’s peak operated with “the highest level of integrity”.

Speaking from the vantage point of a group that was involved with the Task Force and feeding programme’s creation, and worked “to ensure things were done above board” in how the COVID food programme operated, he said all groups involved had “tremendous respect for the public’s funds and the need to use them to the greatest effect”.

The ORG chief voiced disquiet that the Government had released partial and incomplete findings of an audit into the COVID food assistance initiative, adding that it was “hard not to come to that conclusion” that the weekend disclosures by the Prime Minister’s communications director were designed to distract from the controversy surrounding the Dubai trip.

Mr Aubry said members of the Task Force, and non-profits such as Bahamas Feeding Network, Hands for Hunger, the One Eleuthera Foundation and the Red Cross, would likely welcome scrutiny from an objective audit as they had nothing to hide over how taxpayer funds were used and the programme managed.

And, while arguing that the findings could provide The Bahamas with invaluable lessons on how to respond better in future emergencies, he urged that politics be kept out of the evaluation and its findings.

Confirming that ORG had played a role in ensuring the Task Force had the resources and structure that was up to the task, Mr Aubry said: “They scaled up pretty quickly to meet a need that was far beyond the Government’s capacity. This was a new entity that came forward, and was trying to build up best practices.

“They proceeded to do this with the highest level of integrity, sharing and working across different organisations with different standards and mechanisms to come up with a solution to taking a limited amount of money and how to get the best out of it.”

The COVID assistance initiative was structured such that while the Government provided the bulk of the funding, it was the Task Force and its members that co-ordinated the distribution via the established non-profits who, in turn, worked with affiliates and contacts on the ground in multiple communities to determine who was eligible for help and in most need.

Mr Aubry backed the position taken by Michael Pintard, Opposition leader, that the then-Minnis administration would simply have created extra costs and bureaucracy and costs if it had tried to take on this entire task by itself.

It instead chose to work through established entities already operating in the food assistance space, and which had networks and contacts in the required areas. The ORG chief argued that it will “stand as an example for an effective PPP (public-private partnership)”.

Turning to the controversy sparked by the vague statement on the draft audit findings, Mr Aubry told Tribune Business: “I think they themselves, the Task Force, would embrace the concept of an audit assessment and assured governance. That’s part of their credo.

“This new initiative is going to learn, look at how we did this and adapt, so that it becomes more effective and can better serve ourselves in times of emergency. The hope is that this effort is being done with the intent of looking at how we can learn from it and grow the partnership between civil society and the Government so we can respond better in future, and be more effective and efficient.”

The ORG chief said it was “not clear why preliminary results are being issued without the full context of what is going on and what needs to be looked at” when it came to the Government’s ongoing audit of the COVID food assistance initiative.

“It’s really important that this avoids the political rhetoric as much as possible,” he added. “An objective and non-political audit will give most information. What I have seen is a tremendous amount of information gathering and systems in place to ensure the integrity of the food programme.

“There was a tremendous respect: These are public funds and need to be used with the greatest effect by the Task Force, non-profits and volunteers. Using the money to the greatest effect will be the conclusion of that audit if it’s done in full and objectively.

“Responsible governance is simply that..... These are public funds, so there should be a full accounting and understanding of what was done.” The Davis administration, though, appears to have had reservations about the COVID food assistance initiative from the moment it took office.

Obie Wilchcombe, minister of social services and urban development, suggested that it was too costly, and the Government brought the initiative back under his ministry. There have also been complaints that there are no records involving the sums spent, and the initiative’s structure and scope, as well as protocols, controls and procedures, in government files.

However, Michael Pintard, the Opposition’s leader, said past Cabinet papers set-out the mandate and structure of the COVID food assistance initiative, together with costs and the participants involved. In addition, the Government would have access to the permanent secretary and accounting officer at the Ministry of Social Services, who could provide details on the flow of funds.

Any “gaps”, Mr Pintard added, could be filled by the Task Force, which would have financial records and audit-ready paper trails in its files. “It is unfortunate that the Government has picked this time to cast aspersions on a programme that benefited from the input of NGOs,” he said.

“The last thing we want to do is create an unnecessary furore over a situation where the Government has access to the information, and can get the information if it so desires.”