Auditor General’s Scrutiny of Public Funds Given as Grants Essential for Accountability and Transparency
Opposition MP Aseri Radrodro made a legitimate statement in Parliament that the Auditor General should scrutinise public funds given as grants to the Government’s statutory organisations or public enterprises.
It is based on the rationale that public funds are taxpayers money and should be audited by the Office of the Auditor General (OAG). Mr Radrodro, a member of the Public Accounts Committee, said one of the most serious concerns for the committee when reviewing OAG 2015 was noting that a number of the entities that the Auditor General’s Office previously used to audit, were now opting to be audited by private auditing firms.
Why opting to use private auditing firms?
“This practice, eliminates the opportunity for this august House to scrutinise the manner in which these entities have utilised taxpayer’s money, “he said.
“It could have been forgiven if these entities are funded entirely on their own resources. However, to be funded through a Government Grant, there is no exception. “The most prudent way to ensure good governance is maintained by those using taxpayers’ funds, is to allow parliamentary scrutiny as we are the representatives of our people in this August House.” He said not allowing the OAG to scrutinise these entities budgets opened the door for a lot of anomalies, possible corruption, collusion and a lack of guidance. He said these practices were already highlighted in some of these entities as per the OAG reports.
“Hopefully, it is not why some of these entities have opted for auditing by private firms instead of the OAG.
Various entities still under Public Enterprise Act
“It must be noted that it is not right to continue to have a lot of these various entities still under the Public Enterprise Act – years after they have undergone reforms, and yet not allow OAG’s office to scrutinise their books and systems to ensure the intention of their reforms have been realised. “I urge that as long as these entities are being supplemented through Government Grants, the OAG’s office must be allowed to audit them so it allows for parliamentary scrutiny and debate of their books and functions.
“It is always important that government is in a position whereby it sets benchmarks and once we allow private auditing without public scrutiny of public funds, then be prepared to set a dangerous precedent not only for the current government, but for future governments as well.
“We have to learn from the past where such entities like the Fiji Sugar Corporation, the Air Terminal Services and Air Pacific chose private firms to conduct their audits and in doing so, the people of this nation were not aware of the ailing business environment they were encountering until very late. “Today, the National Centre for Small Micro Enterprise, Fiji Airways, Fiji Pine and many more similar entities are again choosing private auditing firms. “Whilst these auditing firms are reputable, the point is, without the OAG involvement, we do not get to scrutinise these entities’ reports in this August House.
“It is crucial that parliament is allowed to scrutinise and question public spending on behalf of taxpayers to ensure prudent use of government resources for the equal benefit of all our people.
“In conclusion Mr Speaker sir, it is said that the Auditor-General checks all Government spending every year and the process is called an audit.
“By carrying out annual audits, the Auditor-General assists Parliament to hold and call to account, all persons entrusted with management of public funds and resources.
“We the members of this August House will come and go, in fact some of us may not be here in the next parliament term.
“What is important is the legacy that we leave behind with respect to the sustainability of our governance structure.”