Auditor general: Govt did not disclose beneficial owners of firms receiving COVID-19 payments

Auditor General Terrance Bastian said the government did not disclose the names of the beneficial owners of companies that received payments for the delivery of goods and services related to COVID-19, despite requests being made.

It was revealed in the audit report on the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) disbursement of $250 million to address the COVID-19 pandemic.

The audit report, which was tabled in the House of Assembly yesterday, revealed that more than $63 million of the $250 million rapid financing instrument which was approved by the IMF in June 2020 was spent to pay overseas and domestic vendors. Specifically, the government spent $29,670,400 for overseas vendor payments and $33,668,242 for domestic vendor payments.

“We were provided with a listing of ‘suppliers of works and services’ that received payments for the delivery of goods and services related to COVID-19. Request was made for the beneficial ownership of these business entities, however, the same is pending,” Bastian said.

“Reference is drawn to the law in The Bahamas governing beneficial ownership, in that confidentiality, access and use of information is legislated.”

In the appendix of the report, Bastian noted that in this case there is no law which imposes the mandatory disclosure of beneficial ownership information on the government and the matter does not relate to pending civil, criminal or international legal assistance procedures.

Still, Bastian recommended that the government address beneficial ownership to strengthen good governance and support transparency.

“We also noted that the IMF states that ‘knowing who ultimately owns companies (their beneficial owners) is a key piece of data that allows governments and citizens to check that money is going where intended’. We note that beneficial ownership full disclosure plays a pivotal role in good governance in government financial affairs with respect to transparency and accountability, integrity and law enforcement work, and mitigating the risks associated with the abuse of public funds, corruption and financial fraud,” he said.

“We recommend that consideration be given to addressing the beneficial ownership disclosure in terms of advancing and strengthening good governance; harnessing accountability in public sector procurement and financial affairs; further strengthening good corporate governance of all legal entities doing business in the country; and further advancing compliance in the regulatory environment to maintain good ethics for safety and protection.”

Bastian said a performance audit of the procurement of goods and services for various programs for COVID-19 will be submitted upon completion.

“The performance audit or value for money audit (VFM) is an examination and assessment of the government officials executing their responsibilities in the delivery of programs, contractual projects at minimal cost – adherence to conservative standards,” he said.

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