Missing pay packets, theft of pay packets and irregularities in payments are some of the major breaches detected within the Divisional Engineer Northern's Office in 2006 by the Public Accounts Committee.

While scrutinizing the Auditor Generals 2006 report on the Infrastructure Services Sector, the Accounts Committee discovered that 6 cheques amounting to $184,926 were prepared without payment vouchers, while some payment vouchers were not passed for payments and cheques countersigned without having the first signature by the appropriate authority.

The Account Committee report stated that the Acting Assistance Accounts Officer, who had taken the keys to the Pay Office, was found to have allegedly stolen $846 and even though internal investigations pointed at the Accounts officer, the Public Accounts Committee was told that no recoveries or disciplinary actions were taken, as the officer concerned did not return after the incident and the matter was reported to the police.

The report also revealed that investigations conducted during May 2006 showed that the pay packets for 11 staff were missing totaling over $2,160.

The Accounts Committee also found discrepancies in the new Labasa Hospital records, which showed that payments of $3,240 were made to Frincos Hire after a lapse of Agency Tender Board Approval which implied possible collusion between the contractor and the employer.

It is also noted that an employee of the Department had tampered with the quantity requested for job sites by increasing the actual materials ordered, resulting in surplus materials and a waste of government resources which could have been avoided if proper supervision and monitoring were carried out.