CO129-607-1 Enquiry into loss of public money 22-5-1948 - 26-10-1948 — Page 59

COPY

Confidential

To.333/72/8

Sir,

ENCLOSURE 4 59

Audit Department,

Hong Kong.

23rd June, 1948.

With reference to your confidential letter No.1/233/3841/46c of the 16th June, I forward, hereunder, my comments on the report of the Committee appointed to enquire into certain losses of Public Money in the District Office, New Territories:-

1.

With regard to paragraph 2 of the report of the Committee, an audit examination of the accounting records reveals the apparent loss of $34,691.34 made up as follows:-

Collected from In Long on 29.4.48 but unsupported by a Treasury receipt Collected from Un Long on 6.5.48 but unsupported by a Treasury receipt Mis-cast in Imprest at D.. South Shortage in Imprest cash covered by irregular inclusion of Taipo vouchers Proceeds from oper. Treasury cheque

(i)

Cash Book balance on 12.5.48

(ii

(iii)

(iv)

(vi) (vii

(viii

11

"

??

**

2,

!1

Less

(ix) Cas! on hand on 12.5.48

"

8,770.15

3,223.45

1,765.90

10.25

93.00 20,04.0.24

9.17.00

84.00

$ 34,903.99

212.65 $ 34,691.34

It is possible that the above total will be increased by an amount of £87 being the total of three Treasury Miscellaneous Receipts the original and duplicate copies of which are missing but the triplicate copies are marked as cancelled. has been referred to the ccountant feneral for further investigation,

The matter

3.

With regard to paragraphs 3-8 of the report, the Committee deal with the accounting arrangements at the Head Office of the District Officer, "Tew Territories, and refer to certain subordinate officers whose duties included being "in charge of the accounts", while Appendix 2 refers to Mr. Au-Yeung Man, another subordinate officer, taking "charge of all accounts, though he is not to handle actual cash, as he is not secured". t appears from the report that no details of the duties to be carried out by these accounting clerks were every given although it is clear that Mr. Au-Yeung Man was debarred from verifying that the Cash on hand agreed with the Cash Book Balance. Furthermore, neither the report nor the instructions given at Appendix 2 refer to what action r. Au-Yeung Man was to take in the event of him finding any irregularity in the accounts. It is also not clear from paragraph 5 of the report on whose authority did Mr. Chung Yiu Kei give r. Au-Yeung Man verbal instructions for carrying out his accounting duties.

4.

I am unable to find in the report any mention of who was responsible for seeing that Mr. Au-Yeung Man carried out his duties and who was responsible for checking the cash held by the Shroffs. It appears from Appendix 5, however, that instructions

The Hon. Colonial Secretary.