W. Samoa public

funds scandal

A politician, four senior govern ment officers and the manager of an import firm were involved in a stores and supply con spiracy which ‘deprived the government of substantial sums of money’ according to a report tabled in the Western Samoa parliament.

The government has come under criticism inside and out side parliament because the background of the affair suggests that insufficient atten tion was given to national man agement and financial controls.

The report tabled in parlia ment is the result of an investi gation conducted by the parlia mentary public accounts com mittee, and alleges ‘secretive and fraudulent practices’ relat ing to irregularities in ordering and buying government supplies. The men named in the report are the former health minister, Tofaeono Tile; a doc tor who had acted as director of health, Solia Tapeni; a senior finance official in the depart ment, Sione Sinitau; a senior administative official in the department, Lesa Fatupaito; the controller of Government stores, James Passi; and the manager of Sonny Industries of Apia, Sopoaga Fiu.

The report makes no estimate of the total amount of money said to have been misappropri ated, mentioning what it calls ‘huge funds’ and ‘substantial amounts’. However it lists specific irregularities involving short supply, duplicated orders and payment for non-existent supplies which suggest that at least $63 000 was involved. The alleged irregularities also in clude short cuts in ordering procedures, direct ordering in stead of tenders, the supply of second-hand equipment pur ported to be new, inability to locate equipment and supplies, lack of reconciliation between payment vouchers and goods received, and the duty-free im port of some goods diverted to retail stores.

Goods and services itemised in the irregularities include

electrical wiring, floor tiles, copying machines and their maintenance, dental clinic equipment, electric motors, electronic paging equipment, maintenance of air conditioners and freezers, hospital furniture, kitchen and catering equipment and mortuary equipment.

The report was tabled in parliament in December follow ing an extensive investigation led by the accounts committee chairman, Leaupepe Taoipu. It led to angry exchanges in par liament, a series of public attacks on the government and disciplinary action in some top sections of the public service.

The immediate result was a move to tighten up ordering procedures and controls over public expenditure, but the full outcome of the allegations will not be known until February when parliament sits again to debate the report.

Tofaeono Tile, the politician named in the report, was given leave under standing orders to make a personal explanation to parliament. His explanation in cluded an angry attack on the integrity of the public accounts committee, and he claimed that many of the reported irregularities had occurred three months after he had ceased to hold the health port folio, and some went back to the time before he was in office. He accused the committee of a conspiracy of its own to shield other politicians and senior pub lic servants from involvement, and he claimed that the com mittee had made up its mind without calling evidence from the people it accused.

Leaupepe Taoipu attempted

to answer the attack on behalf of his public accounts com mittee, but sat down with angry tears in his eyes when it was ruled under standing orders that no debate was permitted on personal explanations given by members. All aspects of the report and issues affecting it could be discussed in detail when the report came up for consideration in February, the speaker, Tuuu Faletoese, ruled.