The Government of the Virgin Islands is under great scrutiny following the release of an Auditor General report which seemingly justifies the concerns of the United Kingdom, and a wide section of the society, surrounding the issuance of high valued contracts for the use of EZ Shipping Barges.
The report emerged following an audit undertaken pursuant to Recommendation B23 of the Commission of Inquiry Report.
It determined that there is no evidence to support the effectiveness of the barges, and that payments for their use by the government continued for two months after the barges had been abandoned.
The report said that while the National Security Council approved the use of barges following the emergence of an unsolicited proposal from EZ Shipping, it mandated that a rapid tender process be undertaken to source competitive submissions. In that time two other local companies were engaged.
Auditors found that before this process would be completed, the EZ Shipping barges were engaged by the Premier without the knowledge or approval of the Governor, the NSC or the Cabinet.
After 3 months of use, and multiple limitations and issues which emerged during that time, the marine platforms were abandoned.
Despite that, the Government had paid $2.04 million to EZ Shipping for 5 months of services under 3 contracts covering the period August 23rd 2020 to January 22nd 2021.
That meant that a total of $738,000 was paid to EZ Shipping out of the public purse from November 26th 2020 to January 21st 2021 while the barges were not being used by the Government.
The audit also found that the contracts with EZ shipping were extended twice without any written request for continuation or reports on effectiveness.
The Ministry of Finance’s tendering process on that occasion was found to have occurred outside the remit of the Ministry, as it does not hold responsibility for border security.
In conclusion the report has found that the expedited procurement process approved by the NSC to secure competitive bids for marine platforms was aborted by the unauthorised deployment of the barges. It added that the cancellation of the procurement process meant that the contract should have been ratified by the Cabinet in the form of a tender waiver.
Auditors found no evidence to support statements made surrounding the effectiveness of the barges. The report stated that “ the continuance of illicit activities was evident in drug busts that occurred during the period the barges were in use. The Customs staff reported a change in modus as persons engaged in avoidance tactics to circumvent the sphere of the platforms”.
Surrounding the payments made to EZ Shipping during the two months that the barges were not used, auditors found that incorrect information was provided to the NSC and Cabinet to facilitate their approval.
“Actions taken by the Premier and the Ministry of Finance with respect to border security without authorization of the NSC and the Governor may have amounted to overstepping their legislative authority. The former by engaging the barges and the latter by issuing public tenders for territorial surveillance equipment for border security”, the report stated.
The Auditor General has made recommendations on this matter as follows:
1. Each of the Departments should be reminded of their respective roles for territorial and border security to avoid future instances of overstepping authority.
2. An assessment should be performed by the Attorney General Chambers to determine whether the Government should pursue recovery of the amounts paid to EZ Shipping for the period 26 November 2020 to 22 January 2021 when the barges were not in use by the Government.
3. An assessment should be performed by the Police and the Director of Public Prosecutions on whether any offences were committed with respect to the engagement of the marine platforms.
4. There should be clear legislative repercussions at all levels for persons who disregard legislative authority and knowingly commit the Government to an expenditure in a manner that is not approved.