The Ministry of Civil Service has submitted significant allegations of fraud and violations of legislation to the Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption, targeting the previous administration regarding the hosting of the 52nd Asian Development Bank Leaders Meeting in 2019. This submission occurred last year and is now being revisited by both the Ministry of Civil Service and the Ministry of Finance.
During a parliamentary session, Assistant Minister for Finance Esrom Immanuel revealed that the Office of the Auditor-General identified fraudulent activities in payments and breaches of relevant laws, rules, and procurement policies related to the event. There were also noted deficiencies in the Financial Management Information System concerning payment processing during the meeting.
Immanuel mentioned that the Auditor-General’s findings indicated a high likelihood of misstatements, leading to the decision for further investigation. The Fijian Government had allocated $10 million for the event, but the actual expenses reached $10.9 million. The additional $900,000 needed to cover VAT was sourced from the Government’s Budget Head.
He indicated that the Standing Committee on Economic Affairs discovered delays by the Ministry of Civil Service and its former minister in finalizing the report, which was completed on December 2, 2020. Although some delays were due to COVID-19, there were also deliberate postponements to present the report to Parliament, which occurred on March 27, 2023, following the formation of the Coalition Government.
Furthermore, Immanuel noted that the Ministry of Civil Service also delayed forwarding the report to the appropriate authorities, including FICAC, for further investigations. This action was finally taken by the current Permanent Secretary and his team after consultations in November 2023.
In light of the elapsed time and actions by those involved, the Committee recommends that the current Executive Management of the Ministry of Civil Service, with support from the Ministry of Finance, follow up with FICAC regarding the status of the cases referred.
Meanwhile, Parliament will debate the report’s contents at a later date in accordance with Standing Order 121(5).