ROSEMARIE SANT
President Anthony Carmona is being advised to hold a news conference on his return to the country from Guyana to address allegations of questionable spending at President’s House raised in the Auditor General’s report.
The report has raised queries about a $2 million discrepancy in spending at President’s House. The report, which is available online under the heading Individual Areas of Concern, stated:
“There were 85 instances of incorrect classification of expenditure, totalling $2,685,236.90, in contravention of financial regulation 65 which stipulates that a vote may not be applied to a purpose for which it was not intended.”
But other allegations about spending on wine and jewelry have also surfaced online and has led to heated debate.
Adviser to the President, Napier Pillai, yesterday told the T&T Guardian while he had not been in contact with Carmona since he left the country, he would advise that “His Excellency should call a news conference and deal with the allegations.”
Pillai has served three presidents — ANR Robinson, George Maxwell Richards and now Carmona. However, he said he did not handle any matter relating to the President’s household and could not speak to the issues now in the public domain.
Sources close to the President said he had been keeping abreast of what was being reported and intended to deal with the matter on his return from Guyana where he has been attending the Commonwealth Magistrates and Judges Association Conference which ends today.
Sources close to the President said the allegations which have been in the public domain were “serious allegations and his Excellency will want to address them.”
However, his communications adviser, Theron Boodan, told the T&T Guardian the allegations were “baseless and there is distortion,” but he refused to respond to further questions, saying it is a matter for the President to address.
Political analyst Dr Winford James yesterday said: “Discrepancies in the Auditor General’s report can be clarified. It may be an accounting error.” However, he said the country needed to get “a better sense of the facts” and it was incumbent on the President to speak with some urgency on the issue.
Without the information and the facts, he said the country should be careful because these were “such allegations of such magnitude, are these things true?”
Speaking on CNC3’s Morning Brew yesterday, political scientist Dr Hamid Ghany also said the country should wait for Carmona’s return to hear what he had to say.
It was a view also shared by former Senate President Dr Linda Baboolal, who acted as President on occasion. She said: “I would wait to see what the President has to say before making any judgment.”
The President’s Office, like the Parliament, reports to the Auditor General. Financial reports are submitted which are contained in the Auditor General’s report. Efforts to speak to the head of the President’s household, Esther Liverpool, were unsuccessful yesterday as she was said to be not in office for the day.