A "damning" internal audit report commissioned by the outgoing CedarBridge Academy executive board showed that funds in excess of $500,000 could not be accounted for.

According to a statement released by the former board yesterday, the audit, held on March 31, was brought to the attention of Education Minister Elvin James on several occasions including at a Cabinet meeting.

The internal audit allegedly revealed several irregularities during the former financial controller's tenure. These issues were echoed in the qualified audit issued by the Auditor General for the 2007/2008 year, the statement said.

Mr. James could not be reached last night for comment, despite e-mails and calls to both his home and cell numbers.

The news comes days after Mr. James terminated the Board of Governors' Chairman George Scott and Deputy Chairwoman Lovitta Foggo. The remaining members of the executive board resigned in protest on Friday.

The ex-board yesterday released a statement outlining 14 challenges they said they were met with.

These included:

l Having no visits or support from Mr. James in areas of policy, clear vision, leadership or commitment to CedarBridge;

l The restructuring of the managerial contracts and "a generally uncooperative industrial environment" at the senior school, culiminating in legal actions brought against the board by managers at CedarBridge due to take place on October 28 and 29; and

l Interference and micro-management of the running of the school by Mr. James through Permanent Secretary Kevin Monkman which is now the subject of a complaint to the Head of the Civil Service.

The statement sent by the former executive board was an attempt to "present a balanced account of the state of affairs at CedarBridge" and "in defence of (their) professional reputations", the statement said.

It said after the termination of Mr. Scott and Ms Foggo, the remaining executive board members could no longer work with a Minister "who would actively and secretively undermine and betray their best efforts to resolve some of the very difficult problems at the CedarBridge". They claimed Mr. James did this by holding "clandestine 'tete-a-tetes' with its legal adversaries and detractors".

The statement stated: "Indeed, unbeknown to the CBA BOG Mr. James was at an advanced stage of mediation with the Board's adversaries in the imminent court case.

"The trust and confidence for and in that Minister was accordingly breached irrevocably and any effective 'administrative relationship' broken beyond repair. This blatant disrespect was palpable and could no longer be tolerated.

"Minister Elvin James's ill-timed action has in fact 'slowed the progress' of a well-managed, and managing Board, and exacerbated CBA's problems. His actions have potentially more than doubled costs to the taxpayers rather than 'saved costs'."