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The Ministry of Provincial Development was so riddled with incomplete projects in 2004 that it is now one of the departments being investigated by the anti-corruption unit.
In the latest Public Accounts Committee (PAC) report into the Auditor General’s 2004 audit of government operations, concerns were raised on delivery of capital work in the rural areas.
“The first issue in the delivery of development capital work for the ministry was that on Self-Help projects which were incomplete at the time of audit. There were four capital projects which were cited and fortunately, the four projects had since been completed,” the Government watchdog noted.
“Another capital work that got the attention of the Auditor-General and ultimately the Committee, was the road programmes comprising four incomplete ones. Those were particularly poor because there were elements of corruption and the lack of transparency in the management and delivery of the work.
“Disciplinary actions had been taken and further investigations by the Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption (FICAC) were still ongoing.”
In the ministry’s Village Improvement Scheme (VIS), discrepancies were also re-highlighted by PAC.
“Some of the discrepancies might have stemmed from the fact that the fund was not controlled by the Ministry, but by the Office of the Prime Minister,” it said.
“That led to the inability to verify and account for the utilization of the funds of many of the projects under VIS.”
Mismanagement of the VIS projects in Ba and Navosa resulted in non-completion of some projects, PAC noted.
“Furthermore, the use of substandard materials for building was also a contributing factor. Disciplinary actions have been taken and further investigations by FICAC are still underway.”
The five-member committee is chaired by former Transport Minister Manu Korovulavula, with other members being former government ministers Taufa Vakatale and Laufitu Malani, and vice president of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama’at Fiji Tahir Munshi.
