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alexk
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were charged with allegedly defrauding the San Juan Laventille Regional Corporation of almost $22.5 million in a payroll scam, concerns are being raised about the pay sheets of the Chaguanas Borough Corporation (CBC).
Attorney Richard Jaggasar, who is representing a group of CBC workers, called for an immediate investigation into the corporation yesterday, saying he suspects there may be fraud and misconduct at the corporation.
At a meeting outside the old Chaguanas Administration building yesterday, Jaggasar raised a number of issues affecting the CBC workers and his clients, one of whom is Dhanraj Balkaran.
Jaggasar said he had been writing the CBC and the National Union of Government and Federated Workers over the contentious promotion and the lack of safety and security for CBC workers, some of whom were threatened and physically assaulted.
In January, Jaggassar said he filed a Freedom of Information request and received the files from the CBC in June. However, in perusing the files he said he discovered something worrying and disturbing. The files showed there were discrepancies with the corporation’s transport section attendance register for a period in 2017 and the timesheet and labour distribution for 2016.
“The concerns of these people (workers) are very real. If one were to look at the attendance register and the pay sheet distribution for any given period, for years one would see discrepancies. A situation similar to San Juan Laventille Regional Corporation,” Jaggassar said.
Jaggasar, in a pre-action protocol letter dated July 9 sent to CBC CEO Jameel Chadee-Ameeral, called for the removal of the transport foreman/dispatcher and called for an investigation into what he suspects is fraud.
The letter raised three concerns - failure to provide a safe and secure working environment, questionable appointment of transport driver/dispatcher and queries and concerns regarding pay sheets. Under the headlined queries and concerns regarding paying sheets, Jaggassar referred to a particular former checker who did not sign the attendance register for years yet being the draftsman of the pay sheets paid himself for a period he did not work. He also drew reference to one employee who consistently signs in and out of the attendance register and receives overtime pay regardless of the hours worked and the post he occupies. At a time when the country needs financial resources, Jaggassar said the bleeding of the public purse was not acceptable.
“What the workers are asking for is a full audit of the Chaguanas Borough Corporation to address these glaring concerns and these glaring inconsistencies in the pay sheets. I have been called by numerous corporations on both sides of the political divide alleging incidents of corruption within the corporation. This is just the first of many,” Jaggasar said.
Addressing the matter, Chaguanas Mayor Gopaul Boodhan said any issue affecting the workers “is of paramount importance to us.” He said matters involving public money must have the highest level of accounting.
“We are not going to take that very lightly. I am going to listen to all the concerns of the workers. If the workers want to have a meeting with me to raise their grievances and concerns I will not ignore them. Thereafter I will address their matters with the council.”