The Tribune

By LEANDRA ROLLE

Tribune Staff Reporter

lrolle@tribunemedia.net

PRIME Minister Philip “Brave” Davis said two non-governmental organisations have not submitted records to give an account of the combined more than $10m they received from the former Minnis administration under its national food programme.

While he did not name either NGO, Mr Davis said the organisations provided no information at all to explain how the money aided hurting Bahamians at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

He added that other organisations refused to provide any information at all.

His comments came as he tabled a 138-page audit report into the National Food Distribution Task Force and the food programme, which have now been disbanded. Mr Davis said the report uncovered “startling findings” along with “major deficiencies” including a lack of record keeping, inconsistencies relating to the sums of money handled and a complete absence of minutes from meetings that were held.

Mr Davis said the task force could not provide the auditors with information that should have already been completed and readily available. Even in instances where the information was provided, only aggregate totals were offered, with none of the supporting documents that would be critical to corroborate figures. There is no back-up provided, no contracts, no cheques, no receipts and no bank statements to support the information, he said.

Mr Davis also took issue with what he called “exorbitant fees” that were paid to some vendors, including a restaurant that was delivering food parcels to families in the programme.

The Cat Island, Rum Cay and San Salvador MP tabled a series of invoices sent to Hands for Hunger from Showman Bahamas Ltd documenting several sums, including one in the amount of $529,760.

The invoice, which showed what appears to be the largest sum that was billed to Hands for Hunger by the restaurant, has two-line items. One line detailed that there was a delivery service charge in the amount of $6 for 5,500 parcels at a total cost of $33,000 and the other line said the 5,500 parcels cost $80 per parcel amounting to $440,000.

With taxes added, the bill made out to Hands for Hunger was $529,760.

Regarding the operations of the programme, Mr Davis said: “There was no consistent system of recordkeeping at the Task Force or NGO level. And it is simply not credible to believe that from 18 May 2020 to October 2021, they were too busy to keep proper records. And some of the records which were kept, raise even bigger questions.

“Why were such exorbitant fees paid for some services?

“For example, one restaurant was paid $6 per box for the delivery of each food parcel. This amounted to approximately $50,000 per month. Why did they pay $6 to deliver a single parcel of corned-beef, flour, rice and the other very basic items they delivered to families in need?

“The delivery cost would have been more than the food itself. And to this day, Madam Speaker, despite numerous requests, two NGOs have still not provided any information at all, and combined, they received more than $10m. Madam Speaker: $10 million of the Bahamian people’s money, has simply vanished.”

Mr Davis maintained that pertinent information had still not been provided to auditors.

“In the case of the food programme, requests for credible documentation of how $53m was spent have not been answered. To be clear, documents have been provided, but they are not documents that answer the most important questions posed.

“To make an analogy, if someone asks ‘How much did your car cost?’ and the car owner answers, ‘My car is blue’, an answer of sorts has been provided, but not one of great relevance to the questioner.

“In the case of the food programme some documents have been proffered up, but they do not provide answers to the Bahamian people’s questions.”

Mr Davis reiterated that he had no personal quarrel with any of the individuals or NGOs involved, but that he found it a matter of “great concern” that a programme like this was run out of the Office of the Prime Minister with almost no controls or oversight.

He added that he intended to fulfill a promise made in his early days of taking office which was to remove the veil of secrecy from arrangements made and hold those who proffered them to account.

In March, Social Services Minister Obie Wilchcombe claimed the country has not been able to provide information to the World Bank on how its $100m loan was used to provide pandemic relief to hurting Bahamians among other things.

This was one of several concerns and allegations raised by government officials about the Minnis administration’s National Food Distribution Task Force in recent months.

However, Mrs Susan Larson, who headed the now disbanded task force, disclosed to The Tribune detailed records on the committee’s spending habits since the initiative’s start, inclusive of food purchases, trucking, shipping, stipends and other overhead costs.

Still, Mr Davis has said they do not have the information needed to answer the burning questions.

“We table the report today and once again, call on those with knowledge of the underlying facts to come forward. Those who have failed to provide answers and evidence still have an opportunity and an obligation to do so,” the prime minister said yesterday.