VZCZCXRO0421
PP RUEHGR
DE RUEHBE #0046 0241931
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 241931Z JAN 08
FM AMEMBASSY BELMOPAN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 1037
RUCNCOM/EC CARICOM COLLECTIVE
RUEHZA/WHA CENTRAL AMERICA COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS BELMOPAN 000046 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV ECON SOCI BH
SUBJECT:  BELIZE:  AUDITOR GENERAL ISSUES SCATHING REPORT 
 
¶1.  (SBU)  SUMMARY:  The most recent report of Belize's Auditor 
General paints a bleak picture of "widespread" waste, fraud and 
abuse in the public sector.  Like many of the reports of scandals 
and corruption in the current government, this one made a brief 
sensation in the press and then faded from view.  The government has 
-- so far -- not been put on the defensive about its governance 
record during the election campaign.  END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2.  (U)  Belize's Auditor General Edmund Zuniga recently released 
his report for the financial year 2006/2007.  It is blunt in its 
assessment of the situation in Belize:  "fraud and impropriety are 
widespread throughout the public service."  The report cites one 
example after another of lax or non-existent internal controls in 
areas ranging from revenue collection to records management, bank 
accounts, use of government vehicles and property management and 
paints quite a sad picture of what happens to public money and 
property here. 
 
¶3.  (U)  The Auditor General was unable to provide an opinion on 
several key government statements of account due to lack of 
supporting documentation.  The statement of assets and liabilities 
and balance in the consolidated revenue fund contained "material 
discrepancies," incomplete source documents, and had no 
reconciliation of millions of dollars transferred between government 
accounts.  The report notes that "there is no indication of any 
effort having been made to collect outstanding loans."  The analysis 
of the government's statement of public debt concludes that "as many 
as 40% of public debt transactions could not be audited because of 
the absence of source documents." 
 
¶4.  (U)  The report cites numerous examples of fraud or misuse of 
office.  In one case, a government official made multiple 
withdrawals from fake accounts in the Government of Belize Savings 
Bank.  When the fraud was discovered the individual was fired but 
not prosecuted and the government made no effort to recover the 
money.  A review of the Ministry of Natural Resources turned up 
multiple examples of Ministry officials acquiring public land (in 
one case 58 separate parcels) at concessionary "social rates."  Land 
was subsequently transferred to relatives or sold at market prices. 
 
¶5.  (SBU)  In a meeting with Poloff, Zuniga attributed the problems 
noted in the report to a combination of inadequate rules and 
policies, inadequate training, willful disregard of the rules and no 
penalties for violations.  He said that he had taken the initiative 
to submit this report to both the Prime Minister and the National 
Assembly so that the document would be made public.  The previous 
year's report, given only to the Prime Minister, has never been 
brought before the House or released publicly. 
 
¶6.  (SBU)  The press seized upon the report when it came out (one 
headline:  "Gov't records a mess!") but, as usually happens, quickly 
lost interest in the issue and did not follow the story very far. 
The current government has shown little interest in pursuing 
corruption investigations or prosecutions.  Zuniga told Poloff that 
the Public Accounts Committee of the National Assembly would be the 
most likely body to follow up, but he was not optimistic that that 
would happen. 
 
¶7.  (SBU)  COMMENT:  Like the many other scandals that have plagued 
the government, the Auditor General's report seems to have made a 
brief impression and then faded from view.  The opposition and the 
press have so far had little success, even with an election just a 
few weeks away, in keeping the government on the defensive about its 
governance record.  END COMMENT. 
DIETER