Unqualified 2020 SOAB Audit report for BTP
Published on: Aug 25, 2022
Bureau Telecommunications and Post Sint Maarten managed to get another unqualified [clean] audit report, this time over the fiscal year 2020. This is rather good news for BTP as an unqualified audit report indicates that the auditor (SOAB in this case) is completely satisfied with the truthfulness and fairness of the financial statements of the organization without having any modifications.
BTP made it a priority to ensure that their books are in order. The organization also received a clean audited annual report for 2019 on the 4th of March 2022, and they are now making ongoing efforts to make sure that other delayed financial statements of the previous years are being provided by the end of this year. The Interim Director of BTP, Mrs. Judianne Labega - Hoeve stated: “we are very happy that we’ve managed to obtain another clean audit report. It really speaks volume as the auditor’s opinion means that we observed compliance with generally accepted accounting principles. I’m extremely proud of my financial team, as we’ve managed to clear most of the backlogs in less than a year. On August 29th, 2022, the audit process for year 2021 starts, and upon completion of this we will be 100% up to date with our reporting obligation in accordance with Lv. BTP lid.19 for presentation of the annual audited financial statements within 6 months of the year end”.
Mrs. Labega-Hoeve also took the opportunity to clear the air on the misconception that BTP still owes outstanding fees to the Government of Sint Maarten. She stated: “It’s clear that BTP have financial obligations towards the government, as also outlined in “de Landverordening Bureau Telecommunicatie en Post”. BTP collect fees - on behalf of the government - in the industries that we are tasked to regulate, and those collected funds are all being transferred quarterly to the government after deduction of our operational & infrastructural expenses and cash reserves. This is all properly regulated by law and to date, we have complied with all regulations and stipulations”.
Ms. Labega Hoeve continued: “the funds that the government is referring to as “missing”, are those (concession) fees that BTP were unable to collect from the industry. I believe it needs no explanation that we can only pay what was collected, and the law foresees in that too.
The interim director of BTP further explained that this issue was reported to many of the previous administrations, and financial team of BTP would gladly sit with the current Minister of Finance to further address the issue of uncollected funds in the telecom and postal industry.
Mrs. Labega-Hoeve also took the opportunity to clear the air on the misconception that BTP still owes outstanding fees to the Government of Sint Maarten. She stated: “It’s clear that BTP have financial obligations towards the government, as also outlined in “de Landverordening Bureau Telecommunicatie en Post”. BTP collect fees - on behalf of the government - in the industries that we are tasked to regulate, and those collected funds are all being transferred quarterly to the government after deduction of our operational & infrastructural expenses and cash reserves. This is all properly regulated by law and to date, we have complied with all regulations and stipulations”.
Ms. Labega Hoeve continued: “the funds that the government is referring to as “missing”, are those (concession) fees that BTP were unable to collect from the industry. I believe it needs no explanation that we can only pay what was collected, and the law foresees in that too.
The interim director of BTP further explained that this issue was reported to many of the previous administrations, and financial team of BTP would gladly sit with the current Minister of Finance to further address the issue of uncollected funds in the telecom and postal industry.