AUDITOR General Pamela Monroe Ellis on Tuesday warned that severe manpower constraints within her department are limiting its ability to immediately revisit newly discovered procurement files at the University Hospital of the West Indies (UHWI) as multiple high-level public audits continue to strain already stretched resources.

Her comments came during the latest sitting of Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) at which legislators sought clarity on what steps the Auditor General’s Department would now take after UHWI officials disclosed that additional procurement files previously classified as missing had been located.

The issue stems from the Auditor General’s report into procurement practices at UHWI, which identified 51 contracts for which procurement files could not initially be produced during the audit exercise, raising serious concerns about record management, transparency, and compliance with procurement procedures.

On Tuesday, acting UHWI Chief Executive Officer Eric Hosin told the PAC that eight additional files worth roughly $65 million had since been discovered in storage areas that were previously searched, while four other files valued at approximately $35 million had been reconstructed.

PAC Chairman Julian Robinson subsequently asked the Auditor General’s Department how it intended to proceed now that more documents had surfaced months after the original audit findings.

Robinson stressed that the committee needed independent verification from the auditor general to determine whether the files now being presented by the hospital were sufficient and credible.

He also sought clarification on what would happen in relation to files that remain missing or those contracts which UHWI now says had been cancelled.

In response, Monroe Ellis cautioned lawmakers against treating the mere existence of files as proof that procurement concerns had been resolved.

She made it clear that any follow-up review would require a comprehensive reassessment of the documents, including checks for authenticity, completeness, and accuracy.

“I am not satisfied with just looking at a file to see that it exists. I would rather to have a more thorough audit done where I can have confidence about ‘bona fide-ness’ as well as accuracy,” Monroe Ellis stated.

However, she warned that it is unlikely that such a review would be carried out immediately as the department is already heavily burdened by several major investigations currently under way.

“I understand your desire to have some level of comfort and better particulars around this matter. But I really have to emphasise that I just do not have the manpower right now. We have other audits that we’re seeking to complete and it’s actually this audit team that is involved and it will have a ripple effect,” she told the committee.

Monroe Ellis explained that the UHWI investigation forms part of a broader examination of the public health sector and revealed that other major audits have already been delayed because of competing national priorities.

“I can draw your attention to the overview of the UHWI report, where I indicated that the UHWI report is really part of a larger audit looking at the public health. Cornwall Regional Health Authority is one, [and] that audit has already been impacted because of the near-time audit of the Hurricane Melissa initiative that we’re doing that is really consuming a lot of our resources. It is necessary for us to wrap those audits up to move on, which is why I’m asking for time to allow the team to complete their review of the Hurricane Melissa initiative, which is quite time-consuming, as well as the Cornwall Regional Hospital,” Monroe Ellis said.

The comments highlight the growing pressure being placed on the Auditor General’s Department as it attempts to balance multiple high-profile investigations with limited staffing and resources.

— Jerome Williams