CO129-590-11 Commission of Enquiry into irregularities in Immigration Departments 22-4-1941 - 19-12-1941 — Page 290

A.

A.

A.

8

991

I have been very busy. I don't deny the fact but I cannot say it is so

either.

I suggest that not only is it so but that it is so to your knowledge,

and that pre testifying to the practice have been through your

hands in relatively recent months?

If you ann

I have here extr: cts from two ost Office files which I handled whilst

I wa etil1 P.3.0.

One donls with the onse of a wireless engineer,

who in the course of his duties woe sont to

bank to enah a chemie

for $10,000 and afterwards discovered that the money paid to him was

short. He begged to be excused from the necessity of raking good the

deficit on the grounds that it was no part of his duties to handle

cash. I decided otherwise and at this officer's request the matter

was referred to the Colonial Decretary. There is a aimte here signed

by the Financial Secretary in which he ankes no comment on the fact

that this unsecured officer was called upon to handle

Does he have to handle cash regularly, or at odd times?

If you call once every month "odd time" it is odd times.

Yeo woll, an officer who has to go to the bank occasionally to onsh

a cheque is not regarded as an officer who handles reverse regularly.

1

You regard the regularity as of considerable consequence?

Yeo.

Not the opportunities at for loss of public money, even though they

occurred onde a month?

in

I would not put it/that way.

Would you refer to the actual wording of the General Order at the foot

of that page (howing B.Orders to . Judney) 0.0.364; in the margin

19.

you will see it reproduces Colonial Regulation 301. Last time this

subject was discussed you stated that you were not scoured because you

did not handle cash. I think you find the terms of the regulation 30

but

not refer to cash/to public sa reverse generally? It is in a section

which deals with custody and control, is that right?

Custody not control.

In other words the full purpose of this regulation is to redure proper

custody of goverment money?

Zes, one of the points.

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