Puerto Plata City Hall audit reveals millions misappropriated

posted on: Dec 15 2010 12:33 by The Reporter. Viewed 463 times.


A recent audit has revealed that around RD$2 million of money (US$53,000) received by the council for operations is unaccounted for and believed to have been embezzled.

Puerto Plata’s Mayor Walter Musa has instructed that city oficials be investigated by the courts over the loss.

He has since given the audit covering the years 2009 and 2010 to lawyer Lic. Evelina Laluz.

Enternal auditors, Alejandro Tavárez and Dominga Hernández made a thorough inspection of the cities accounts and discovered that RD $ 1,890,631.00 has gone missing over the past two years.

According to the report, the money was systematically removed month by month:
2009 January RD$ 32,471, February RD$ 13,147, March RD$ 99,267,  April RD$ 86,409, May RD$ 87,682, June RD$ 106,407, July RD$ 61,063, August RD$ 25,102, September RD$ 134,552, October RD$ 7926, November RD$ 23,718 and December RD$ 5479.
2010 January RD$ 136,307, February RD$ 79,986, March RD$ 145,228, April RD$ 246,970,  May RD$ 23,067, June RD$ 189,287, July RD$ 147,339, August RD$ 211,714 and RD$ 61,922 in September.

Musa explained that he ordered the audit, which has not been completed, on City revenue and its management, and found 'anomalies’, which he said he had no intention of covering up. He defended the transparency in how he handled the council’s resources and noted the efforts made to improve collections during his first as well as after his second administration.

"We can say that no previous administration has achieved the amount of income that we have collected and paid to the municipal treasury," he said. "Previously, the amounts raised were maximum RD$ 1.0 million each month, usually around RD$ 400,000 to RD$ 600,000 a month."
"I can say that we collect in excess of RD$ 2.5 million minimum each month, and some months RD$ 5 million in payment of municipal taxes," he said. "With that money we were able to perform some of the works and actions have been carried out in the town of Puerto Plata.”

President of the City’s Council of Aldermen, Councilman José Ramón Durán, praised the courage of Mayor Walter Musa in ordering the submission of officials responsible for the RD$ 1,890,631 loss.
"I want to highlight the courage and openness with which the mayor Walter Musa has been handling the public affairs of the City and he has shown that in their management, impunity could not happen," he said.

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