( L - R ) Walker, Christie

Commissioner of Customs Danville Walker has rebutted claims that an auction of abandoned vehicles by his department at the Queen's Warehouse was tainted by irregularities and partiality.

Walker was responding to the news that the Office of the Contractor General (OCG) will be launching an enquiry into the matter.

In a release to the media yesterday, the OCG stated that it saw the need to launch the investigation "amid allegations of irregular, improper and question-able procedures in the conduct of the auctions" which have been "reported both in the media and directly to the OCG".

Above reproach

Walker told The Gleaner that his arms are outstretched to welcome his fellow public servant as he was sure the Customs Department had been above reproach in its dealings.

"We have no doubt that everything has been done in accordance with the rules and regulations and done properly - we will cooperate fully with them," said Walker.

The Customs head said his only hope was that the suggestions of the contractor general at the end of his enquiry will lead to more efficiency and transparency instead of bureaucracy.

The cause of the controversy seemed to have come from the involvement of the police in the auction. The police were purchasing a number of vehicles and driving their prices beyond market value.

Uupset

"Some people were upset that they weren't getting the vehicles that they came to get, some were upset that they were not getting the vehicles for the prices that they were hoping to get them for," Walker explained.

Peter Brooks, who had visited the auction on Monday with the intent of purchasing a vehicle, is one of those who was outraged by the presence of police personnel.

"... The auction process continued with one person winning the first five of six bids. It became apparent to the public that no one could outbid this person even if you carried the bids over double the market value - as some of us were wont to do to test our theories," Brooks wrote in a letter expressing his concerns to The Gleaner.

"In any Sunday classifieds, one can see a 2005 Honda Fit going from a low $795,000 to a high of about $1.2 million. Why then were these agents of the state willing to pay between $1.5-$1.6 million? Who will pay for these excesses?"

Walker, however, argued that the involvement of the police in the auction was not an irregularity of the auction but, in fact, a normal feature.

"The police coming to the auction is a normal course of an auction and we even have an opinion from the Attorney General's office that that is the way they should proceed," Walker explained.

The Customs boss further stated that he did not support the position of some that the involvement of the police was unfair.

On the contrary, Walker said the police should be allowed to purchase vehicles for which they have justifiable need. They will have to justify spending excessively, he argued.

"Some people are suggesting that we take out some cars for the police to get and auction the other ones and tell the police they can't bid on those. I disagree with that approach because I think that is somewhat manipulative," he said.

andrew.wildes@gleanerjm.com