MILLIONS WASTED

National Audit Office (NAO) annual report, for the fiscal year 2013-14, had thrown light on various violations in official establishments, including “wasting hundreds of millions of dinars, out of public funds.”

The report was delivered to His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa on December 30, Prime Minister HRH Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa the next day and to the Parliament on Monday.

Parliament Financial and Economic Committee Head MP Isa Al Kooheji told DT News yesterday, “It is too early to comment on the audit report at this point of time. We are aware that the public is eager to find out more about it, but it will take us at least one month to study it properly.”

According to a report published yesterday by our sister newspaper Al Ayam, NAO detected many fundamental violations committed in public and semi-official entities.

The 700-page report didn’t exclude any establishment, starting with ministries including health, education, finance, industry and commerce and authorities including Labour Market Regulatory Authority (LMRA) and Information Affairs Authority.

Major national firms such as Bahrain Petroleum Company (Bacpo), Aluminum Bahrain (Alba), Tamkeen and Gulf Air also featured in the report.

DT News kick starts a series a three-part series on the National Audit Annual Report.

‘Too early to comment’

National Audit Office (NAO) in its annual report for the fiscal year 2013-14 has brought to light various violations in the official estabishments, including “wasting hundreds of millions of dinars, out of public funds.”

The report had been handed over to His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa on December 30, Prime Minister HRH Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa the next day and to the Parliament Chairman Ahmed Al Mulla on Monday.

“It is too early to comment on the audit report at this point of time. We’re aware that the public is eager to find out more about it, but it will take us at least one month to study it properly,” said Financial and Economic Committee Head at the Parliament MP Isa Al Kooheji.

According to a report published yesterday by our sister newspaper Al Ayam, NAO detected many fundamental violations committed in public and semi-official entities.

The 700-page report didn’t exclude any establishment, starting with ministries including health, education, finance, industry and commerce and authorities including Labour Market Regulatory Authority (LMRA) and Information Affairs Authority.

Bahrain Investors Centre 

1, 634 expats recruited via 127 inactive CRs

Mentioning Bahrain Investors Centre (BIC), which comes under Industry and Commerce Ministry, the report stated that out of 135 Commercial Records (CR) registered under six investors, “only eight CRs were active by December 2013, while 94 per cent were not operating.”

The NAO revealed that “1,634 expatriates were recruited by these inactive CRs.” It also said that 4, 586 CRs were not renewed for periods ranging between two to fifteen years.

Culture Ministry 

BD129, 000 for a one-man contract

The report stated that Culture Ministry had signed a contract with an individual, worth BD129, 000. A person whom the report said “was chosen without taking any standards into consideration.”

Anyhow, the report also explained, “due to disability of completing the required tasks and lack of qualifications,” the ministry released the person, after paying him BD53,000.

Justice, Islamic Affairs and Endowments Ministry 

Around BD250,000 Monthly rewards, without obtaining permission in both Jaffaria and Sunni Waqf Directorates

NAO report also disclosed that monthly rewards, varying between BD300 to 500, were being paid to employees of both Jaffariya and Sunni waqf directorates in the ministry, until April 2014, when a Royal Decree was issued to pay these awards.

The report said that the awards summed-up to BD123, 000 in the Sunni Waqf Directorate and BD126, 000 in the Jaffariya Waqf Directorate, during the period between January, 2011 and December, 2013.

Moreover, “both directorates suffered deficiencies by the end of 2013, crossing BD8 million.”

Health Ministry 

A bundle of violations detected

NAO annual report mentioned various violations detected in Health Ministry,  underlining several matters that included “unregulated annual leaves for resident doctors, especially in out-patient clinics, resulting in the accumulation of appointments that reaches seventy appointments a day per doctor in some clinics.”

Other violations in the ministry included the lack of paramedics, old sterilising equipment that exceeded twenty years of using and “a polluted kitchen at Muharraq Geriatric Care Centre that caused 24 cases of diarrhea among elderly patients on March, 2013.”