Comptroller’s Office observes over RD$263 million in irregularities at Energy and Mines

An investigation presented in Bajo el Foco, supported by an audit from the Office of the Comptroller General of the Republic, revealed observations totaling more than RD$263 million at the Ministry of Energy and Mines during the period between September 2020 and April 2021.

Among the main findings are 203 plots of land valued at RD$86.9 million that lacked property titles, RD$22.1 million paid for goods and services without evidence of receipt, as well as a RD$10 million agreement with the Municipal League Against Cancer for PCR tests, for which the auditors did not find the file supporting the agreement nor evidence that the supplies entered the warehouse or were delivered to beneficiaries.

The audit also noted RD$11.7 million paid for an international arbitration without documentation justifying the financial commitment, RD$3.3 million paid to a supplier with an expired contract, and 13 checks for RD$2.2 million withdrawn by third parties without authorization.

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Likewise, the report states that the Ministry withheld RD$20.8 million in Income Tax deducted from its employees and did not remit them to the General Directorate of Internal Taxes within the established deadline, although those funds were subsequently regularized.

Among the other observations documented by the Comptroller’s Office are payments to suppliers without tax certifications, per diems pending delivery to drivers, fuel tickets without identified beneficiaries, fuel allocations to unauthorized personnel, and excess payments for per diems.