PRESSURE IS mounting on the Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica (PCJ) as another parliamentary committee castigated the agency for a questionable transaction at the agency three years ago.

Members of Parliament's Public Accounts Committee (PAC) were livid yesterday when technocrats from the Ministry of Mining and Energy failed to provide a clear explanation about how a $2-million payment was made in 2006 to a security company for providing services at a community centre in Santa Cruz, St Elizabeth.

Auditor General Pamela Monroe-Ellis disclosed that her audit found that the PCJ had no affiliation with the community centre yet sums were paid to the security firm.

Robert Martin, deputy financial secretary, suggested that an incident like this should be investigated by the Office of the Contractor General.

"He also has the powers of recommending to the DPP (director of public prosecution) for prose-cution and he has the mechanism in place to do the kind of investi-gation," Martin told the PAC.

Officials at the ministry said that the security services were provided to safeguard building materials, as the centre was being renovated.

Permanent secretary in the Ministry of Mining and Energy, Hillary Alexander, told the PAC that a forensic audit was being conducted at the PCJ.

It was reported that a draft of the forensic audit would be completed in October.

The permanent secretary said details of the transaction would be divulged in the forensic audit.

But committee Chairman Dr Omar Davies instructed the government technocrats to return to Gordon House next week with details.

She said two senior financial officers were terminated in relation to the payment. Since the incident, she said the PCJ had improved its internal controls.

edmond.campbell@gleanerjm.com