The Ministry of Culture lost 16 laptops and Jan Zrzavý’s painting worth CZK 2 million
PRESS RELEASE on Audit No. 14/01– October 20, 2014
The Supreme Audit Office (SAO) performed an audit of the Ministry of Culture and its management within years 2011–2013. Auditors scrutinized properties worth CZK 657.7 million and financial resources in the amount of CZK 34 million. Auditors revealed errors in various areas – in accounting, inventory taking, property transfers to other institutions, renting and leasing of properties, and consulting and legal services.
In March 2013, the Ministry of Culture decided to transfer some of its properties to the newly established State Cinematography Fund. Before the moving began, the Ministry failed to conclude an agreement on property transfers in order to secure the properties properly. During the moving, seven items got lost. According to the Ministry’s records, one of the lost items – a painting by Jan Zrzavý entitled “Karlachovy sady” – was originally purchased for CZK 10,000. When the loss had been recorded, the Ministry ordered an expert’s opinion, which said the painting was worth CZK 2–2.5 million. The Ministry informed the Police as late as seven months after the painting had been lost and failed to report about the other missing things. SAO auditors were not given any explanation of the delay.
When scrutinizing leasing and renting agreements of the Ministry of Culture within the period 2011–2013, auditors revealed errors as well. The Ministry concluded agreements with two companies that rented copy machines, which cost about CZK 6 million within the audited period. The SAO finds this uneconomic as average annual costs of one rented copy machine amounted to some CZK 32,600 in 2013, while the average annual expenses of one similar copy machine owned by the Ministry made less than a half of the sum.
Within the audited period 2011–2013, the Ministry of Culture paid CZK 32.4 million for consulting and legal services. In some cases, the Ministry failed to prove that invoiced and paid services had indeed been provided. Some of the procured consulting and legal services could have been performed by the Ministry’s own staff, namely elaboration of documents for the Government’s meetings and annual reports. In 2011 and 2012, the Ministry paid CZK 362,000 for these preparation tasks in total.
When taking inventory for the period 2011–2013, the Ministry of Culture revealed differences amounting to CZK 1 million. For example, 16 laptops worth CZK 467,000 in total were missing in 2013. The damage commission acknowledged that there was a poor storage system at the Ministry, but no actual disciplinary action was taken concerning this or other cases of lost properties. The inventory was taken by hired external agencies in 2012 and in 2013, which cost over CZK 273,000. Auditors also scrutinized the Ministry’s accounting and revealed that during the audited period, the Ministry failed to give complete, right, provable, clear and well-arranged information about its accounting.
The SAO has notified the respective financial authority of a reasonable suspicion that budgetary regulations were violated in case of the amount of CZK 2.9 million.
Communication Department
Supreme Audit Office