NCN Board launches Special Audit

The board of Directors at the National Communications Network has now launched a Special Audit at the state owned radio and TV network. A private firm has been given the job which should be completed by next week. The move comes in light of a Special Hearing the board held on Wednesday at the office of the President.

At that hearing a number of officials and employees and persons connected to NCN were brought before the board and questioned, among them the Chief Executive officer Fuzzy Sattaur and Programme Manager Martin Goolsarran. Production staff members were also brought before the board as well as the company’s finance point persons.

Reports are that the Board was not too happy with some of what it learnt at that special hearing and there may have even been an attempt to get the CEO to proceed on leave.

At issue are a number of financial irregularities at NCN. The board came across surprising information about how the company’s top brass were allowing business to be transacted. Financial records could not be found for a number of major projects that NCN had undertaken. There were reports of expensive pieces of equipment going missing, annual multimillion dollar purchases of equipment and massive discounts to relatives and friends of at least one very senior official.

Capitol News understands that at least one relative of a senior official at NCN enjoyed discounts for the placements of ads and programmes to the tune of over 70% off. That left NCN receiving under $500 per spot for ads that would usually carry a cost of over 1500.

Additionally there is the issue of persons receiving payments for the production of TV programmes carried on NCN when NCN really did the production on its own. Money which should have gone to NCN was steered away into the private accounts of NCN Officials linked to the Production department.

The special audit that began today will shed more light on a number of other worrying irregularities at the company. At least that’s what some board members are hoping takes place.
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