Audit trails! Sound Christian doctrine!

[hermeneutika]

So with the Post Office scandal rumbling on, the vexed question of audit trails comes up.

Le 19:36 Just balances, just weights, a just ephah, and a just hin, shall ye have: I [am] the LORD your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt.

Mic 6:11 Shall I count [them] pure with the wicked balances, and with the bag of deceitful weights?

Cor blimey!! Honest weights!!! Accurate audit trials. Surely this PO scandal hopefully cures us all of trusting management!!! The then head of the PO was a ex vicar!! She was being groomed for the Bishop of London!! THOU SHALT ALWAYS COVER UP THE TRUTH!!!

Apparently the PO sub postmasters never had too many problems when they had a purely paper system. If there was a problem you could always track it down with the paper trial. I used to work for William Hill before computerization. Everything had a paper trail. It was relatively easy to track down accounting errors.

So why o why did not the PO either keep a paper trail in existence...or failing that generate two audit trails? eg one electronic audit trail on the local office pc, and one audit trail sent via Horizon to head office. At the close of business the computer could compare the two audit trails. And even the computer could do a real time balance after every transaction so you never get out of balance.

And if you do show a loss or a gain, it would become immediately obvious.

I am watching the ITV programming on this subject, surely outrage is correct. And a ex vicar found covering up......or maybe God is bent too??

[Kendall K. Down]

On 10/01/2024 19:03, hermeneutika wrote:

> Apparently the PO sub postmasters never had too many problems when they had a purely paper system. If there was a problem you could always track it down with the paper trial. I used to work for William Hill before computerization. Everything had a paper trail. It was relatively easy to track down accounting errors.

Computerisation offers many benefits, but it would seem that the system
was rushed in too quickly, without adequate testing. As you say, they
should have kept both systems in operation until the computer system was
proven to be reliable.

To what extent the head of the post office was responsible is open the
question. Of course the buck stops with her, so I am quite comfortable
with her giving up her honour and perhaps returning some or all of her
financial bonuses, but it is not clear that Fujitsu was entirely honest
with her and some British chap who had a big role in the affair is
refusing to testify unless guaranteed immunity, which to me argues for a
sense of guilt on his part.

God bless,
Kendall K. Down

[John]

I worked for the Post office back in 1979 but could I eckers like get
the balance right on my accounts. We would do a weekly balance of
everything done that week and mine would be either up and down each
week, sometimes by thousands, and this was well before the days of
computers. I dread to think what would have happened if i had Horizon
to help me.

The Post Office were very good and very patient but after 8 months I
resigned as it all got on top of me.

[Muhammad]

On 10/01/2024 19:03, hermeneutika wrote:

I plan on watching the TV series when I have more time.

From my little reading, and what I've listened to of in discussion shows...

I initially thought, it was a case of no-one contemplating the computer
system could be wrong. A bit of 'Little Britain', “computer says no”.

But, the more that comes out from this, is screams of a cover-up.

The shocking thing is, the postmasters were being told, it was only
them, no-one else had the problem. Thus, they must've taken the money.
The idea of hiding the fact, that it was many postmasters (not just one)
that were coming forth with discrepancies, IMO was driven from top down.

Now we know there were reports of many postmasters reporting the same
concern, from Post Office documents. It would appear they found, it was
better to prosecute postmasters, seek to recover funds...Instead of
admitting the system they were using was at fault. In addition to the
postmasters that were prosecuted, there were many, not know what else to
do, that made-up the difference from their own funds.

In the period this was happening, many Offices were closed, which works
in favour of the Post Office, being able to show profit on the books.
This worked better in favour of the bid for privatisation, in being able
to charge higher fees.

I would find it hard to believe Paula Vennells (businesswoman and
Anglican Priest) who presided over this scandal, that she didn't have a
depth of knowledge on the matter. As it was a public company, being
set-up for privatisation, I would imagine some politicians too were
involved.

I doubt we'll ever get real results, in the way of justice for the
people that have endured due to this, other than economic compensation.
It'll at most turn out to be a lessons learned exercise without anyone
in real power having their collar felt.

The postmasters, were sentenced, some committed suicide, some so
mentally depressed, it cost them years of their life, and those that
took care of them...

[Kendall K. Down]

On 11/01/2024 18:31, Muhammad wrote:

> The postmasters, were sentenced, some committed suicide, some so
> mentally depressed, it cost them years of their life, and those that
> took care of them...

Yes, the human cost is incalculable.

[hermeneutika]

It would seem so......i have also worked for companies where of course human error is everywhere...and the machines of course never fail!!!! Guess what? i have worked with fallible machines.....surely to test the machine is to admit that that the machine is fallible......
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