The Listin Diario publishes today part two of the exposé by journalist Ana Mitila Lora on the scandalous US$13 million Civil Aviation Board-International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) aviation project. The project supposedly would have readied the aviation sector of the country so that the US Federal Aviation Agency would lift the ban on Dominican registration airlines flying to the US. The Listin report says that instead the project was but "a business since its creation in 1997 where each took a share of state funds." Basing her report on conclusions of the Chamber of Accounts audit, she says the project was plagued with irregularities in the purchase of equipment and vehicles, many not needed by the organization and by payments made for costly irrelevant workshops. Mentioned, for example, is the purchase of fire extinguishing equipment for all airports, at a cost of US$104,591 when this was not a responsibility of the project. Furthermore, the cost of these equipment was padded by an extra RD$105,637 as a conversion rate of RD$17.06 was used, instead of the RD$16.05 of the moment. Another example of an irregularity, was the purchase of military-type beds, blankets, mosquito nets and boots for RD$1,056,200 for the fire department of the airports, when the later departments are responsibility of the privatized airport concessionaires, and not the project.
