A compliance audit of the records kept by the Governor General’s Office/Residence from January 2015 to December 2019 found that the vote books checked during the audit were not properly kept according to regulations 19 – 21 of the Finance Administration Regulations, 2009.
The 2021 audit report stated that an equipment ledger was not maintained by the Governor-General’s Office/Residence, contrary to Store Rules Section 4, Rule No. 48 and 50. The inventory sheets were updated to account for most of the items stationed in each room/office in accordance with Store Rule No. 51; however, the following shortcomings were observed:
1. The inventory sheets failed to account for paintings and art exhibits;
2. Items donated to the entity were omitted from the inventory sheets; and
There were a number of unserviceable items recorded on the inventory sheets without the necessary action taken for their disposal.
The vehicle logbooks for the periods January to December, 2015, 2016, 2017, and January to February, 2018, were not presented for audit inspection. The audit inspection received four (4) vehicle logbooks covering the period from March 2018 to September 2019. The vehicle logbooks presented were not satisfactorily maintained. The following shortcomings were observed:
“There were instances where the distance travelled was not recorded in the vehicle log books, and there were cases where the head of department or the designated officer’s signature was not affixed to the vehicle log logbooks, authorising the journeys travelled.”
The audit report for 2021 showed that the wage cards and register/timesheets presented for audit inspection were not adequately maintained for the period under review. The following deviations were observed:
During the period March 2016 – May 2019, a total of $2,141.29 was paid to five (5) employees for work done on several public holidays, although the times of arrival and departure were not recorded in the register/timesheets to signify that the employees had worked on the holidays in order to justify payments made. The payment for work that was not performed on public holidays is a contravention of Regulation 3(3) of the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Wages Regulations.
Leave eligibility granted to employees was not in accordance with regulation 4(1) of the St. Vincent & the Grenadines Wages Regulation (Agricultural Workers) Order, SR&O No.30/2008 and No. 15/2017.
A total of $885.40 was paid to an employee for the period 26th November, 2015, to 23rd December, 2015 (20 days). However, no information was recorded in the register/timesheet to justify the payments. There were instances where employees’ names were recorded in the register/timesheet; however, their wage cards were not presented for audit inspection, and there was no information recorded on the wage cards for 2016 and 2017 for three (3) employees, while the card for 2017 was not updated for one (1) employee.
“Based on the audit procedures carried out and deviations detected, the audit concluded that the records maintained at the Governor-General’s Office/Residence for the period 2015–2019 were not in compliance with the established audit criteria,” the report noted.
