Navajo Council debating forensic audit of Navajo Oil & Gas Company

HERE AT NAVAJO COUNCIL, WHERE COUNCIL ADOPTED AGENDA ABOUT 12:20 p.m.
THE COUNCIL THEN WENT TO A FORENSIC AUDIT OF NAVAJO OIL AND GAS COMPANY, A TRIBAL ENTERPRISE THAT HAS BEEN IN AN INTERNAL DISPUTE BETWEEN THE BOARD AND THE SHAREHOLDERS FOR SEVERAL MONTHS. THE FORENSIC AUDIT WAS SUPERVISED BY THE NOGC BOARD AND THERE WAS NO MENTION OF THE BOARD’S EXPENDITURES BEING AUDITED.
THE AUDIT WAS PRESENTED VERY QUICKLY AND I TRIED TO CATCH AS MUCH INFO AS POSSIBE. BUT I DID VIDEO TAPE WHICH I’LL DOWNLOAD AS SOON AS I CAN.

NAVAJO OIL & GAS COMPANY auditors
met Aug. and started Aug. 22 and completed Oct. 31. forencic april 1, 2010, april 2014, four year period.
high level findings – we looked at various types of expenditures, not properly expended, lack of adequate expenditures. $1.7 million not properly spent.
key areas, $813,000, not business interest for NGOC operations, for outside parties.
$123,000, $415,000 conflict of interest spend

POINT OF ORDER
NAVAJO COUNCIL DELEGATE ALTON SHEPHERD
Are these confidential? was it left up to body on confidentiality?

SPEAKER PRO TEM BATES
all i heard about confidentiality was for documents to be returned? what do you want?

BOARD PREZ LEONARD ELTSOSIE
we leave it up to you if want to go into confidential session but it is confidential because it is investigation that was conducted.

SPEAKER BATES
no motion for executive session

DELEGATE MEL BEGAY
in our experience in dealing with finances and audits, typical fashion is for information to be made under oath so ask that Navajo Oil & Gas be place dunder oath.

SPEAKER BATES
not official hearing so no oath required.

DELEGATE LORENZO CURLEY
surprised and forensic audit was to pershuade Council to go in a particular directions regarding charter and board. so in a sense we are in hearing body and evidence presented to us, i view it as evidence and folks before us are presenters of evidence so i believe an oath is necessary.

DELEGATE LEONARD PETE
there are a couple of words that doesn’t go well for me. you said issues pointed out to you to audit specific areas. if you did audit without anyone telling you what to audit then your report would be more believable.

SPEAKER BATES
he has 12 minutes left so do you want to go into executive session?

DELEGATE KENNETH MARYBODY
we shud keep open. there are two other audits that were made and so i ask that we listen to those two. we’d like to keep it open os public aware.

NAVAJO OIL & GAS PRESENTERS
page 6, non business spend to NGOC, lawyer work for shareholders $710,000, and $264,000 for meetings with lawyers; legal work not authorized by Board. Tent from O’Henry, $31,000 for Santa charitable entity and Marybody is chairperson; payment to NHA $30,000 donation and over $2,000 without approval from Board for Twin Arrows; over $2,000 Nov. 2014, Aug. 2012 $2,600; local refrigeration.

Board didn’t approve increase of board stipend from $250 to $500.

Spencer Willie, paid more than $200,000 paid, and he is brother of Lynette Willie, who was NOGC public information officer.

Corporate credit cards, July 2013 to June 2013, lack of proper documentation.

Raises approved without support by Navajo Oil & Gas CEO. $46,000 bonus without justification. No advertisement for vacancies.

july 2013 to july 2014, 100 percent increase in travel. small amount of equipment lost.

$17 million transferred to non-approved bank. (Not true)

DELEGATE LEONARD TSOSIE
these enterprises are going wild. we need to put clamps on enterprises. these are suppose to be young professionals but they see pot of money and start giving out. they give no disclosure of conflicts of interest. AND this is not a private company.

DELEGATE MEL BEGAY
audit was suppose to done of Navajo Oil and Gas during a certain period of time but this audit is narrow. it covers only certain amount of time. there was a Navajo Oil & Gas office in Denver and there was questionable expenditures.

DELEGATES LORENZO CURLEY AND ALTON SHEPHERD have both said on the Council floor that the audit appears to be unfair and that the shareholders should be allowed to respond and that other audits of Navajo Oil & Gas should be presented to Council.

DELEGATE KATHERINE BENALLY
nest step for audit is it goes to oversight committee (Resources & Development Committee) and then Budget & Finance Committee for corrective action plan. with recent decision of Office of Hearings & Appeals regarding expenses of shareholders for attorney fees is within their authority. I agree with Delegate Shepherd that this audit appears to be a “witch hunt” by Navajo Oil & Gas company Board against Navajo Oil & Gas shareholders.

DELEGATE KENNETH MARYBOY
i asked for written documents regarding the concerns of Board about the test donated to children for Christmas. I also stated that i would return tent. I also ask that the former Navajo Oil & Gas Company CEO Joe be allowed to present a report to the Council. This audit appears to be “pretty bias.”

DELEGATE JONATHAN HALE
as we talk about enterprises, it’s interesting. we are having issues with another enterprise. but i have problems with this audit because of the involvement of the Navajo Oil and Gas Board. I don’t know if all documents there. People leave with documents and some documents are destroyed. And do we, Council delegates, need to be shareholders? Because we are swayed by what happens in Council. And these enterprises “wine & dine” Council for preferential treatment. And as Delegate Katherine Benally said. When are we going to stop beating each other up in public. Do we put hanging post up outside and then we’ll be satisfied when that person is really gone? We rip each other up to where all dignity lost and still not satisfied. Do we want blood? enterprise created by council for benefit of people and there needs to be an action plan and that is what i recommend – an action plan.

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