PS says CCC review routine

THE Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Culture and Local Government has told reporters here that a review of the operations of the Castries Constituency Council (CCC) that began last week is routine.

Donovan Williams said the department of culture and local government is keen to ensure that all of the entities under its purview are assessed in a manner that is transparent and accountable.

“This, coming at the end of the tenure of the current board, is an appropriate time for us to do what we would normally do as a sort of spot check reference,” Williams explained.

“I know when the word audit gets bandied about, persons tend to think on the negative – that there must be some wrongdoings. But it is really about assessing procedures, policies, making sure that the dictates of the Act are being carried out consistently.”

The P.S said that from the standpoint of his ministry, the review is ‘a very routine thing.’

“I think the evidence is there that the City Council over the past two years has had some very significant impacts on the City of Castries in varying ways,” Williams asserted.

He declared that as such, there is a level of confidence in the work of the Mayor and the City Council.

However, the P.S told reporters that for obvious reasons of transparency and accountability, the department of culture and local government wants to make a thorough assessment of all of the agencies.

“We think that the lessons that can be derived from this exercise will again feed into the tenure of the new board coming in and so over time, this process of review and assessment becomes built into the whole system.”

Williams stated that if Saint Lucia is serious about local government reform, it is something that all of the councils will become subjected to once they take on a greater level of financial responsibility.

He said because the CCC has overall financial responsibility, the review exercise is being done with that entity.

But Williams said assessments are being undertaken of all of the councils.

He told reporters that the CCC review, which started last week, is not an exercise to identify ‘wrongdoing’, but to assess performance.

Asked whether his ministry is satisfied with the work of the CCC, Williams replied in the affirmative, declaring that a lot of good work has been undertaken by the Mayor and the CCC.

“I think the constituents of Castries themselves are quick to tell us that as well.”