Ministries and audit queries
A RECENT report of the House of Representatives Committee on Public Accounts and its recommendation regarding non-response to audit queries have once again exposed the depth of corruption in public institutions in the country. Piqued by what it termed "the enormity of waste and corruption in government establishments", the Committee is calling for the withholding of funds allocations to such ministries/agencies on grounds of audit queries, to make them sit up. According to the Committee, "Funds should not be released by the Accountant-General to ministries or agencies which fail to answer Auditor-General's queries on the previous year's accounts of their organisations until they have successfully done so."
Worried by the discovery of colossal waste and corruption in some ministries and agencies, the Committee also wants the extant financial regulations of these agencies, especially those that are in conflict with the 1999 Constitution to be reviewed urgently. Particularly, the Committee wants reviewed, laws that enable certain parastatals and corporations to generate revenue and spend such funds outside the national budget.
Although it is commendable that the House of Representatives' Public Accounts Committee has carried out the probe and come up with these recommendations, its findings are really not new. They have only confirmed what is already obvious to the public, especially since the courageous and damning revelations of the erstwhile acting Auditor-General of the Federation, Mr. Vincent Azie. If anything, the Committee's report further validates Azie's position as well as indicts both the legislative and executive arms of government which have to date, swept Azie's celebrated recommendations under the carpet.
Pervasive violation of financial regulations and wilful disregard to audit queries in all branches of government which are at the core of the Public Account Committee's findings were equally the crux of Azie's report. It is rather regrettable that government has allowed these manifestations of deep-seated corruption in the conduct of public affairs to deteriorate. Ordinarily, every ministry/parastatal has (or should have) its internal audit unit/department which must ensure that all financial dealings obey laid-down rules. In addition, every ministry or agency of the government has a properly identified accounting officer who must equally ensure the proper and prompt rendition of the accounts of the organisation. And that such officers are now not living up to their responsibilities is pointer to the descent to the reign of corruption.
Regrettably, the Auditor-General that is supposed to enforce the rules seem to be hemmed in by the overbearing influence of the executive arm of government. Not even the legislature is doing enough to prompt the office of the Auditor-General to perform its constitutional role. Which is why, year in year out, the nation plods on without any proper auditing of the financial dealings of the government. At present, apart from the widely hailed Vincent Azie report, for which the government unfortunately chose to victimise him, it is doubtful if any other audit report has been issued. Yet such a report is supposed to be produced every year, covering transactions of the previous year.
It is even apparent that the incumbent Auditor-General is sitting on those recommendations of Mr. Azie which if pursued to their logical conclusions would have obviously checked the rot raked up by the Public Accounts Committee of the House of Representatives. We therefore urge in the circumstance that the incumbent Auditor-General should stop acting like a stooge of the government, and move to deal with the subsisting rot that ridicules his office. Had the office of the Auditor-General done its work fearlessly, the pervading irregularities reported by the House Committee would not have arisen.
What is obvious is that there already exist enough rules and regulations regarding public finances as well as sanctions for their violators. Were these rules followed/enforced, the recommendations by the Public Accounts Committee would have been unnecessary. And that the Committee came up with findings very similar to Azie's report two years ago, only confirms a failure of all facets of government. This is yet a pointer that President Olusegun Obasanjo should properly focus his civil service reform on those officers who are either ignorant of or pay scant regard for laid-down financial regulations. That should be the proper take-off point for the much advertised civil service reforms of the government, if transparency and accountability are to be restored in the conduct of the nation's public affairs. The challenge is urgent and compelling.
