By Binta Jaiteh
Honorable Allagie Mbow, Vice-chairperson of the Finance and Public Account Committee (FPAC) of the National Assembly has urged the Auditor General to provide a list of all the people that are found wanting for fraudulent activities in all sectors and to also give the latest update on their prosecution or repayment.
During the adjournment debate of the National Assembly recently he said that the National Assembly considered the recommendations of the Consolidated Report of the Finance and Public Accounts Committee (FPAC) for the period 2016-2019 on the government and its various agencies’ audited accounts.
He commended the Finance and Public Accounts Committee of the current legislature for carrying out unfinished business of the previous committee
According to him, cognizant of the provisions of the 1997 Constitution of the Gambia, Public Finance Act 2014, and the Financial Regulations of 2016, therefore, resolved that all outstanding imprest be retired by October 31st, 2022.
He noted that, that all unreconciled government transactions indicated in the audited accounts be reconciled by the Accountant General before the end of the financial year, 2022 and a report sent to the FPAC. That the government, through the Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs, endeavours to table before the Assembly a revised Public Finance Bill and a revision of the Financial Regulations 2016 before the end of the financial year 2022;
However, the Auditor General considered invoking his power under section 160(5) of the Constitution where discrepancies of a criminal or fraudulent nature are discovered during an audit. The Auditor General considered including in its report to the National Assembly all cases of criminal or fraudulent nature reported to the Inspector General of police.
“The Accountant General resolve all prior year closing balances and current year opening balances of the Government concerning Loans and Grants be consolidated before the end of this financial year” he stated
In his concluding remarks, he stated that the Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs must be part of any grant negotiations and be the recipient of all grants for and on behalf of the Government. “All government projects shall use the IFMIS system for all the accounting processes by the end of this final year, 2022,” he stated.
He reiterated that any existing revenue collections by third parties shall be handed over to the Accountant General within ninety days and that the Auditor General considers initiating a special audit of all State-Owned Enterprises in line with section 160(8) of the Constitution by the end of the financial year, 2022.