| 1. |
Why do treasury officers insist on asking
me for my N.I.S. number even though I have my passport?
|
| A |
Our financial system (Smartstream) identifies individuals
by their N.I.S. number and there have been incidences where
persons of the same name have had payments from governments.
They are easily identifiable by their N.I.S number which
is unique to each and every national.
|
| 2. |
When visiting the Inquires Officer I have often
hear the terms "Your payment is pending or it is complete
or sometimes it may be rejected. What does this mean? |
| A |
Those different terms actually identify the different statuses
of payments on our system.
a.. Pending - Payment is recorded on the financial system and is awaiting approval
by either the Ministry or the Treasury Audit.
b.. Complete - Payment has been approved by Treasury Audit is awaiting the printing
of a cheque.
c.. Rejected - Payment does not meet the requirements of the Financial Regulations
by the ministry's approver or by the Audit department of the Treasury.
|
| 3. |
Since the Treasury is undertaking renovations I am still
confused as to where the different sections are housed. |
| A |
Payroll, pensions, administration and reconciliation sections
are still housed in the Treasury building located on Laborie
Street. The section in which cheques are printed and revenue
collected (Cash Section) is temporarily housed on Brazil Street
with the Audit and Accounts sections. They can be found in
the Kinsley building opposite Starlite.
|
| 4. |
I live in Choiseul and I am often contracted by certain
departments to perform some maintenance jobs but it is often
a difficult task for me to travel to Castries to collect or
query my payments. There are no banks in my district and it
is a hassle to visit Scotia Vieux Fort. |
| A |
We have Treasury Sub-offices island wide. Arrangements
can be made via your department/ministry or with the respective
Treasury officer to have your cheque collected at Choiseul,
Soufriere, Vieux-Fort, and Micoud, Anse la Raye or Dennery
offices.
|
| 5. |
As a government pensioner how often do I have to come in
and sign my forms? |
| A |
These forms can be issued by the Payroll section or printed
at our website.
|
| 6. |
Why does it take quite a long time for bail refunds to be
processed and paid when in the initial stages I made the payment
promptly? |
| A |
Once a verdict has been given by the Courts and all legalities
finalized then the receipt from the customer has to be verified
by the first district court. The payment process begins
when the refund is entered by the department on to the system
(Smartstream)
and this is then routed to a Treasury Refund Officer. Once
that is settled the Treasury has to verify by "Treasury
Receipt" that the money was deposited. Once this is
located then the payment has to be approved by the Refund
officer
then to the Audit section then for payment by the Cash Section.
|
| 7. |
As a merchant there is a delay in the time that payment
is received once I have been issued with a government Purchase
Order. How can I receive prompt payment without asking for
the cheque to be issued before my goods are delivered? |
| A |
The purchase order identifies two persons who can assist
in tracking your payment and ensuring that payment is guaranteed
within thirty days. These persons are the Buyer (who actually
creates the purchase order) and an authorised senior officer
within the department. When these persons have failed then
Treasury officers can facilitate in tracking your payments
and ensuring that departments/ministries follow the process.
|
| 8. |
As an overseas supplier what means are there for guaranteeing
speedy payment since payments seem to take forever. |
| A |
Payments are made to our overseas merchants via three methods;
bank drafts, sight drafts and wire transfers.
a.. Bank Drafts are done via the Bank of St. Lucia and these payments take about
a month
b.. Sight Drafts are also done via the government's bank but these payments are
made by the bank on behalf of the government
c.. Wire transfers require a bank account number which has to be verified before
payments are made. Payments are done within one to two days.
However the onus is on the department to ensure that payments are promptly received. |
