Top educator says scam was under investigation
Government efforts at damage control in the latest accusations of scandal got rolling late today as former Chief Education Officer, Dr. Cecil Reneau, agreed to speak to the press. According to the veteran educator, allegations of financial improprieties came as no surprise… and his ministry was already on the case.
Cecil Reneau, Spokesman, Ministry of Education
“Yes, something has been going on in our Ministry for a number of months. And we found out about it and we started taking the necessary action to curb what was happening at the time.”
“Now within the ministry per se, which I managed as Chief Education Officer, there were six service area, each responsible for a designated area, and directly responsible to me. One such area was tertiary education and at the time, Mr. Bey was at the tertiary education desk. So any transaction in terms of grants being processed for recipients would have had to gone through that tertiary desk.”
Janelle Chanona
“So Mr. Bey was involved in this scholarship scam you’re saying?”
Cecil Reneau
“I am not calling it a scam.”
Janelle Chanona
“Falsifying vouchers?”
Cecil Reneau
“I am not even saying that. What I am saying is that all the processing of any grant that was approved to a person went through that desk. Now when that desk filters into the system of paying, there are clerks within that system who prepare those vouchers. So it’s not…I can’t try the case or I can’t say who is guilty or not. What I do, I collect the facts and I present them to top management.”
Janelle Chanona
“Yes you’re saying that something was going on inside the Ministry of Education. Yes, vouchers were being falsified. At the end of the day, who is doing behind this? This is clerks working, this is top supervisors, C.E.O.s, who is doing this?”
Cecil Reneau
“Well like I said, in my capacity, when it came to my knowledge, I had to look at the and try to find out what was going on. One action that I recommended to top management was to remove Mr. Bey from the tertiary desk. And I think that is when we started to gather the other information, but we didn’t know the magnitude of what we were dealing with. And I think at this point in time, I can’t say the magnitude, because obviously they were operatives outside of the Ministry of Education. The young lady that came forward, as we learned over the news, was related to Mr. Bey in some way. So it’s…”
Janelle Chanona
“So you’re saying it all goes back to Mr. Bey?”
Cecil Reneau
“It is not only Mr. Bey. What I’m saying is it is larger than nailing it on one person.”
Janelle Chanona
“Outside the scope of not being able to pinpoint who was doing this, have you been able to ascertain how much was taken?”
Cecil Reneau
“Again, we do not have that figure. The only way that figure will be determined is when it goes to the next level and they bring in the auditors.”
Janelle Chanona
“When are we going to be seeing an auditing?”
Cecil Reneau
“I’m not the person who sets the timetable for that.”
At yesterday’s U.D.P. news conference, Leticia Mora told the press that she falsely cashed vouchers at the behest of people associated with Education Minister Cordel Hyde’s re-election campaign. Despite repeated requests, however, Mora would not divulge the names of those people to whom she gave the money. Hyde and C.E.O. Dorian Barrow have denied any involvement in financial irregularities at the Ministry of Education.
