Department Of Museums: Still Haven’t Corrected More Than 50% of the Improvements Requested By the City Audit
<p><span style="line-height: 1.6em;">It was found by a report of the watchdog. Some of the critical points the area has to reverse is the absence of agreements to souvenir shops and bars, an exemption from liability for damages to the City, and shortcomings in the conservation of goods, labeling parts, and an employee database.</span></p> <div> </div>
A report by the Auditor General of the City of Buenos Aires (AGCBA, for its acronym in Spanish) revealed that 52% of the observations made in 2008 on the work of the General Directorate of Museums, related to the preservation and control of assets, "registered no progress "until this year. However, of the 25 observations made on 2006 administration, it said, in this new monitoring report, that 28% had a "satisfactory progress" and the remaining 20% had only an "incipient" improvement.
The auditors carried out their duties in January-April this year, noting that museums hadn’t had any improvements regarding the care and conservation of the goods were, since "40.78% are stored in inadequate spaces and conditions".
Another area in which the AGCBA did not detect any progress was in linking the Associations of Friends with the respective museums, particularly regarding the commercial use located on the same premises. The report adds that "there are no agreements substantiating the assignment of space for installation of merchandising shops and bars, making it liable to the City for damages that may occur on third parties."
Of the cases that had an "incipient breakthrough" auditor jargon, they highlight the Register of Cultural Properties. The AGCBA accessed the list containing the labeling and description of goods in 6 museums, only in the Perlotti "did they not have access" to information because "the person responsible was on annual leave, and no one else in the museum knew the password.”
In addition, the audit took a sample part to "verify their load on the database" and found that the method of recording information "varies not only from one museum to another but also from one object to another." This variability answered the question: "is the personnel performing the upload of information specialized or is it an administrative task and how many human resources are available to the museum for uploading", among other issues.
In regard to the "marking" of the piece, the audit noted that "the criteria to support them have been modified over time" because "pieces that were labeled in times that more invasive criteria for the kind of object prevailed". The report states that there are elements of silver with engraving in the same body with a number. Following the issue of registration of property, the AGCBA explained that "in the absence of the necessary resources for proper labeling, we chose to identify the piece trying to mitigate the risks of it." An example is the City Museum where "five objects which were marked with tape and glue on pottery and enameled objects" because they "did not have the necessary resources." While "it is not the right way", the auditors said it "contains less adhesive than a common label."
Employee Database
The AGCBA noted in its report that "the Office possesses distinct and inconsistent information regarding museums with plant personnel." The data come from the "crossing of the sources of information." Only "three in ten cases reported by the museum coincides with the information provided by management." The "extreme case": the Larreta Museum "reported 21 people working while the Directorate has registered 47".