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Tag: Auditor General

  • Kwara’ Auditor General parleys key govt offices to strengthen accountability, transparency, prudence

    Kwara’ Auditor General parleys key govt offices to strengthen accountability, transparency, prudence

    Newly inaugurated Auditor General of Kwara State Mallam Fatai Olajide has held marathon advocacy engagements with heads of the different government departments, calling for improved due process, transparency, accountability, and prudence in handling government operations. 

    The advocacy engagements involved senior officials from the Office of the Secretary to the State Government Professor Mamman Saba Jibril; Commissioner for Finance Dr Hauwa Nuru; Accountant General Alhaji Abdulganiyu Sani; Permanent Secretary (Service Welfare) in the Office of the Head of Service Mrs Mercy Shittu; and the Permanent Secretary in the State Civil Service Commission Alhaja Jimoh Kafayat.

    Olajide said the engagements reflected the state’s commitment to financial discipline and due process.

    The Auditor General emphasised the need for strict adherence to existing financial regulations, stressing that transparency and accountability are vital to effective governance.

    He reiterated the Governor’s unwavering commitment to these principles, as outlined in the administration’s policy directives.

    Read Also: OPay extends N1.2b 10-year scholarship to Kwara State Polytechnic

    He sought the cooperation of the principal officers to ensure compliance with extant laws that govern public resource management. 

    He noted that fostering accountability not only promotes good governance but also strengthens public trust in government operations.

    Assuring officials of professional support from his office, the Auditor General pledged to uphold financial discipline and enforce relevant regulations in all fiscal matters. 

    He reaffirmed his role as a driver of internal financial prudence, dedicated to ensuring effective resource management in alignment with legal provisions.

    The officials, for their part, commended the Auditor General’s initiative and pledged their full support. 

    They expressed their commitment to upholding transparency, accountability, and strict adherence to due process in their respective offices, recognising their shared responsibility in ensuring sound financial management for the state.

  • 2020 audit report: Auditor General asks Labour Ministry to account for N3.106b

    2020 audit report: Auditor General asks Labour Ministry to account for N3.106b

    The Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment is to account for over N3.106 billion it allegedly spent in 2020 without due process and requisite approval.

    Alternatively, the ministry will have to refund the money to Federal Government’s coffers, the Office of the Auditor General for the Federation (OAuGF) has said.

    In a report his office submitted to the National Assembly last December on non-compliance with extant government regulations in government expenses for 2020, the Auditor General accused the ministry of various infractions and failure to show evidence of expenses it carried out within the period under review.

    The Nation reports that while the ministry responded to some of the issues raised in the 32 audit queries from the OAuGF, it has maintained silence on many others.

    For example, the AuGF’s report alleged that the ministry failed to provide documents, files, correspondences, returns, and accounting records on the running of the Geneva Desk Office and how N351.252 million was spent in 2019 and 2020.

    The report also said the ministry paid its workers a total N226.078 million for monitoring and inspection of capital projects and updating of fixed assets register in the six geopolitical zones, monitoring and inspection of capital projects in 2020 and monitoring and inspection of zonal/state labour offices, job centres, capital projects, and skills acquisition centres without evidence on the specific times of visits, scope of work, and reports on such inspections.

    Also, the report said out of N653,669,705.00 granted as cash advances in 2020, the ministry failed to account for N344.027 million, adding that multiple advances granted to workers when the previous ones had not been retired led to loss of government funds.

    It also alleged that after awarding a contract to upgrade skills vocational and training centres in Warri, Calabar, Lagos, and Ibadan in December 2020, based on bids and quotations submitted, the ministry issued another letter two weeks later revising the schedule of requirements.

    Read Also: Yearly audit recommendations not implemented, says Auditor General

    The report reads: “The revised schedules were inflated and, in some cases, especially for the capital items, the quantities to be supplied were reduced to accommodate the inflated prices. The revised schedule made the government to lose N15,502,677.07.

    “Evidence of justification for the variation in prices and quantities, such as applications by the contractors, appropriate approvals from the initial approving authority who approved the original contracts, reports of market survey to support the prices reviewed, and Need Assessment Report to justify that these items and the quantities were actually needed were not produced for audit.”

    The OAuGF also alleged that the Labour and Employment Ministry paid N261,502,802.54 to 54 contractors in 2018; N209,267,695.26 to 32 contractors in 2019; and N26,528,204.59 to four contractors in 2020 for the renovation of non-existent job centres across the country and in Akwa Ibom, Kaduna, Kano, and Sokoto.

    The report said the ministry awarded contract for the procurement of equipment for the specialist skills acquisition centres at Alor in Idemili North Local Government Area and at Ifitedunu in Dunukofia Local Government Area of Anambra State in 2018 and paid the contractor N46,353,415.50.

    It added: “The existence of the items could not be verified, despite the presence of records, such as Store Receipt Vouchers (SRV) and Job Completion Certificate, issued in December 2019 by the ministry.

    “Evidence of procurement due process and contractors’ eligibility for the contract award, such as open competitive bidding, company profile, certificate of registration, tax clearance certificate, PENCOM registration certificate, VAT registration certificate, among others, were not produced for scrutiny.

    “Efforts made by Audit to carry out physical inspection of the items supplied was unsuccessful as the team was told that the items supplied were packed at the Minister’s private residence and therefore, not accessible.”