translated from Spanish: States waste almost 2 thousand 500 million pesos of federal funds

the audit top of the Federation (ASF) found multiple irregularities, from subejercicios to possible diversion of resources, by almost 2 thousand 500 million pesos that the Federation gave to States in 2017 and that it comes from a background that lacks clear rules of operation, objective monitoring indicators and mechanisms of transparency.
It’s the so-called Fund for strengthening financial (FORTAFIN) whose last budget, moreover, turned out to be almost 20 times higher than what originally had referred in the disbursements budget for 2017. It went from 3 thousand 256 million originally approved to more than 55 billion at the end of last year.
Due to the size of the irregularities, the ASF said that he has ordered a package of new emerging audits to follow up on the fate of the money extracted from this Fund belongs to the so-called Branch 23, which has been pointed out by opening the door to facts of corruption, as the so-called “Moche”.
In reports of results presented to Congress, the ASF warned that many States even with absolute discretion use resources that they receive from this Fund and deposited the money in your concentrating account, fact that of itself is already illegal.
“It was noted the lack of operation and rules of clear and objective criteria for their allocation to each State, nor for their accounting even some States incorrectly classified them as shares and deposited them in the Blender account”, He said the audit.

All colors

failure to analyze the way that resources of the FORTAFIN were using, the ASF practiced 17 compliance audits financial, one of them to the Treasury as the entity responsible for coordinating Fund and 16 more to different federal entities that received the same resources over the past year.
The result were various irregularities detected by an amount that amounts to 2 thousand 477 billion pesos and that States have an obligation to clarify. Otherwise deemed alleged harm to the public purse that will give way to the criminal charges before the Office of the Attorney-General.
Poorly managed money total there are 1 thousand 269 billion pesos, the 50.5%, which corresponds to resources institutions reported having spent unless there are sufficient documents attesting that it was actually invested in something. I.e., lack of evidence proving it. This is the most common irregularity.
The second irregularity detected more frequently and that amounts to 829.5 million pesos (33% of the total observed) correspond to resources that entities received but not spent, which however were not returned to the Secretariat of Hacienda. It is money that does not appear.
The Auditors also found anomalies in spending 87.3 million pesos that were destined to the payment of poor quality works or that were not executed. At the same time reported 77.1 million pesos which were paid as advances for services that were not compensated.
In addition there were improper payments or excess, according to the Superior audit of the Federation, amounting to 56 million pesos. The rest of the reported money corresponds to other irregularities.
But adding to the above, the ASF is considered as “critical” is the fact that without apparent justification, the original amount of the approved FORTAFIN in the 2017 budget, and which was of the order of 3 thousand 243 million pesos, has grown to 55 billion p these is an on exercise of the 1,600% between approved and what is ended will deliver in the end.
Which States were the main benefit this increase? The State of Mexico which ended up getting 8 thousand 528 million pesos; Guerrero followed with 3 thousand 792 billion pesos; Michoacán with 3 thousand 771 million pesos; City of Mexico with 3 thousand 422 million pesos; and Chiapas with 3 thousand 328 million pesos.
Approve an amount for this Fund, and end spending much more isn’t an isolated fact. An analysis of the organization evaluates Mexico threw that in 2016 to the FORTAFIN was assigned in the budget 1000 560 million pesos and yet, at the end of that year the amount had raised to more than 65 billion pesos , an uncontrolled growth of more than 4 thousand percent.
In the opinion of the Auditors, this is possible thanks to the almost total lack of rules and real criteria on the usefulness of this Fund, their scope and the criteria for distribution.
“There is a legal framework that regulates who grant resources, the reasons, the amount and temporality.” Currently, the delivery of resources occurs through agreements that the secretariat defined, which are not published in the official journal of the Federation (…) The analysis suggests there is no clarity about the problem or public need that attends the Fund, or boasts about its relevance and scope justification”.
State of Mexico and Puebla, red flags
the State of Mexico and Puebla are two entities where the largest amount of resources from this Fund managed unevenly is concentrated.
For example, of the thousand 1 269 million pesos spent without any sufficient verification, 56.4% corresponds exclusively to money given to the State of Mexico in the management of Eruviel Ávila and Alfredo de el Mazo, while 37% are resources assigned to Puebl a, during the administrations of Rafael Moreno Valle and José Antonio Gali.
And the almost 830 million pesos of the FORTAFIN the audit reported how not exercised but not returned, the 44.5% correspond to Puebla and the 22.4% to the State of Mexico.
In the specific case of the entity state of Mexico, the Auditors established that almost 2 of every 5 floors Fund delivered to the said State presented irregularities in its management.
But in addition to the missing money auditors determined that the State could have done undue promotion services and works paid with this federal fund. The above since, for example, on some concepts not included the legend “this program is public, far removed from any political party. It is forbidden the use for purposes other than those laid down in the program,”while the phrase was not placed on works” this work was done with federal public funds”.
“In conclusion, the Government of the State of Mexico did not an efficient and transparent exercise of the resources of the Fund for the financial strengthening, in breach of the rules and regulations governing its exercise” determined the Auditors.
In the case of Puebla the auditors found irregularities at more than 60% of the money the State received from the Fund. This adds an opacity problem since the State Government even failed to comply with the delivery of minimum reports must return to the Treasury to certify the management of resources.
The accumulation of irregularities that auditors found in these and other States reviewed resulted in 56 sheets of observations by equal number of possible fraud to the public purse, that of not settled soon will become criminal complaints before the PGR.
In addition to this 39 promotions of punitive liability, that there are cases in the the ASF acts against officials specifically in order to economically repair the damage that could have caused.

the Fund for strengthening financial black hole is one of the funds that belong to so-called bouquet 23, a game of resources that the federal Government intended for States, but according to the analysis of the ASF and organi organisations specialized in the topic, lacks serious indicators and minimum controls, what favors that acts of corruption committed with it.
“There are no rules of operation, nor clear and objective by the SHCP, criteria to determine what amount and slope of the FORTAFIN is assigned to each State” said the ASF in the latest audits delivered package.
Last January the organization evaluates Mexico warned the way in like this Fund and general resources from industry 23 have grown exponentially with minimum controls on your application. He warned that this favors its use of corruption or political purposes.
“One of the reasons why the 23 bouquet is prone to political use, is that through it creates programs that provide subsidies to local governments to fund projects of physical investment, among other support programs that own Superior auditing of the” Federation pointed out be characterized by lack of transparency with regard to their objectives and use of resources, as well as by the lack of guidelines”, said the Organization in its analysis.
The discretionary and irregular management of the resources of this Fund have been highlighted in cases such as the Chihuahua where, at the beginning of 2018, the Governor of that entity Javier Corral said that the federal Government had decided not to give you more than 200 million AV whose delivery was reflected in an agreement.
The State Governor attributed this situation to a so-called reprisal by processes which his administration had promoted against former officials PRI designated acts of corruption.
The funds in this sector are also the origin of the so-called “Moche”, as referred to amounts of money they were promised by lawmakers to various States in Exchange for more, then any benefit. For example the percentage of a contract that was signed from them. This is possible thanks to the lack of controls and clear rules on the management of these resources.
In this context both auditing and Mexico evaluates insist on the urgent need to regulate the uses of these funds and conventions that are signed with the States, define What are your objectives (for what must be used the money), as well as the times of delivery resources and indicators that allow us to evaluate it.
 

Original source in Spanish

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