Paraguay
The Comptroller General upheld observations on payments and records at the Municipality of Saltos del Guairá
A report cited by ABC Color points to disbursements for daily laborers without sufficient support, as well as inconsistencies in revenues and expenses during the 2024 administration. The municipality submitted explanations, but the comptroller’s office maintained its objections.
The Comptroller General of the Republic upheld observations on the 2024 administration of the Municipality of Saltos del Guairá, headed by Héctor Morán, according to ABC Color.
According to that outlet, the agency detected payments of G. 1,784 million for daily laborers without activity reports to substantiate what tasks the hired workers performed. It also noted that in the spreadsheets submitted by the municipality, the payments were recorded by department, such as the Municipal Board or the Mayor’s Office, without detailing in most cases the number of laborers or the identity of each one.
Still according to ABC Color, the municipality responded that activity reports are prepared on a quarterly basis and attributed the lack of tax certificates to administrative limitations. However, the Comptroller General concluded that no sufficient elements were presented to prove the effective provision of services or the tax compliance of the contractors.
Among the examples mentioned in the report is a payment of G. 29 million in February 2024 for laborers in the Traffic area, without a breakdown of how many there were or who collected the money. The report also mentions amounts ranging from G. 1,000,000 to G. 132 million under that same concept during the audited period.
ABC Color added that the Comptroller General found inconsistencies between the Budget Execution of Revenues and the Receipt Issuance System. It also cited payments of G. 42,610,000 for maintenance and minor repairs that did not have all the supporting documentation.
Another of the points observed concerns self-issued invoices for G. 726,520,000 linked to parking. According to the report cited by the newspaper, the revenue receipts did not have original supporting documents, such as vouchers or receipts, and the self-issued invoices did not specify the number of the external receipt that gave rise to them, which affected the traceability of those resources.
In its response, the municipality said it had the receipts in its municipal archive and noted that they were small documents. Even so, the Comptroller General upheld that the lack of documentary evidence and verification procedures prevented technically validating the revenues and weakened internal control.
According to ABC Color, Morán’s administration had already received questions from the comptroller’s office over previous fiscal years, and now the observations extend to the 2024 period.
Sources
About this note. Written by El Notero with assistance from artificial intelligence, based on what was published by the cited outlet. El Notero did not conduct its own reporting on this fact.
