PAGO PAGO, American Samoa (Samoa News, PIR) - American Samoa Treasurer Velega Savali has called on Leiataua B. Alailima, who heads the Territorial Office of Homeland Security [TOHS] to “come clean” by providing the real reasons the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has frozen funds for the TOHS program.
“I'm being used as a scapegoat for something that has occurred over many years. It's an accumulation of years of abuse in the use of these funds,” said Velega responding to Samoa News inquiries. “I know the real reason why these funds were placed on a freeze and I have the documents to prove it.”
Velega declined Samoa News' request for copies of those documents.
Leiataua told Samoa News Thursday that the improper use of federal grant funds to pay TEMCO [Territorial Emergency Management Coordinating Office] pre-disaster mitigation employee salaries without authorization resulted in the funding suspension.
As reported by Samoa News, a little over US$16,300 went to pay TEMCO employees whose salaries are funded by the FEMA Pre-Disaster Mitigation (PDM) program. The money that went to paying them came from Emergency Management Planning Grant (EMPG) under DHS' FY 2006 EMPG funding.
Leiataua said at the time, the grant conditions didn't allow this, and asked Velega to restore the funding back to the EMPG grant.
“I have a question for Leiataua-is he trying to tell me that a freeze in a major federal grant was caused by a lousy $16,300? There is no way funding is frozen over these lousy pennies,” said Velega. “He should come clean with the truth as to the real reasons for the freeze, instead of pointing fingers at me.”
Velega, who was confirmed as ASG treasurer in 2005, said he got involved when the TEMCO employees came to him for help after they were not paid for a while. “I had to help these people because if they are not paid, the general fund will fork out the payment,” he said. “These employees have already rendered their service and I tried to resolve it. Now I'm being blamed for the freeze for a mere $13,000?”
He said Leiataua “should tell the truth to the people of American Samoa as to the real reasons for the freeze.”
Corey Gruber, acting assistant secretary of the DHS' Office of Grants & Training, said that after reviewing a report from the Office of Inspector General (OIG) regarding TOHS, “we remain concerned about financial management and administrative deficiencies in American Samoa.”
“Since our review of the OIG report, we have found that Homeland Security Grant funds have been diverted to uses by the State government offices for other than the intended use of Homeland Security funds,” wrote Gruber. “This is not only in violation of public trust but the In Lieu of agreement as well.”
TOHS is operating on certain conditions under what DHS describes as “in lieu of high risk,” which was imposed in late 2005.
Among the conditions the local program must meet under the “in lieu of high risk” are to complete independent audits of all homeland security grants from FY 2000 to the present; tighter financial and programmatic controls; and a formal organization chart showing the structure of agencies receiving federal funds (TOHS and TEMCO).
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