Millions Of Public Funds Disbursed Without Supporting Documents, Including A Medical Grant For Breast Reduction Surgery

The disbursement of $23 million in assistance grants awarded under ex-Premier Andrew Fahie‘s administration between 2019 and 2022 was done without transparency and accountability, a recent damning report from the British Virgin Islands Auditor General has revealed.

The auditors found that the grants were disbursed without guidelines by the thirteen electoral representatives with the Premier’s Office awarded forty-seven percent of the cash, while the  House of Assembly disbursed thirty-nine percent.

In some cases, some persons received $50,000, while others were given $200,000 over the three-year period, the document stated, highlighting that there was no communication between ministries which resulted in grants being awarded for the same purpose by various ministries through programmes, including Covid-19 Small Business Grant and Premier’s Office Assistance Grants.

One listed example of poor oversight and double awarding of cash was the case of three fishermen from the First Electoral District – Fahie’s former District – who received funds from the Premier’s Office and the official Covid-19 grants programme for farmers and fishers.  They were awarded $49,000 from the official programme, and over $75,000 from the Premier’s office.

Additionally, the auditors found that a former legislator also received cash totalling $109,500 for monthly living expenses and that $2.6 million was listed for higher education, but $790,000 was given without any documents to show that applicants were indeed enrolled with institutions.

Persons also applied for medical assistance without supporting medical evidence, auditors shared, noting that in one case, a grant was awarded for a breast reduction surgery without any medical diagnosis or referral.

The report stressed that there was no verification in the application process for grants with representatives and ministers responsible for giving the final approval for the disbursements.

Some 250 applications were assessed by the House of Assembly showed that a mere ten percent of the documents were submitted with supporting documents.

Auditors described the grants system as an unauthorised welfare programme with more than $1 million given to public officers, or a family member, which was a clear conflict of interest.

The report concluded that funds were not equitably distributed across the territory with several cases of preferential treatment such as the Premier’s Office giving thirty percent of almost $11 million to residents living in his former District.

The audit was one of the recommendations of the 2021  Commission of Inquiry which was held to investigate government corruption at all levels.