Deputy Auditor General, Yaw Sefah is warning its auditing of state institutions could be compromised if government continues to underfund its activities.
The Constitution mandates the service to undertake auditing government Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDA's) at the end of every financial year and submit its report to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC).
However, Mr Sefah says its staff have over years been using their own resources for the auditing due to late releases of funds by the finance minister.
Speaking to Joy News' parliamentary correspondence, Elton Brobbey on the sidelines of a training programme for members of the parliamentary press corps and PAC, Mr. Sefah says the development could seriously compromise the integrity of its auditors.
"The resource constraints is something which is affecting the entire public sector it is not only the Audit Service and sometimes we think that the Comptroller and Accountants General has been benevolent to us considering the releases that we get," Mr Sefah said.
He added that "it still doesn't come to reason that given the nature of the work that we are doing, there is every need that you insulate the auditor from these temptations which are very very necessary."
According to him if they are not given the logistics to work, much cannot be said about the objectivity of the work the auditor is going to do
Regarding the question of professionalism, however, Mr Sefah said, "we cannot say that by virtue of the fact that someone gave you accommodation [when you were auditing them] you are going to compromise on your work."
He added that they are professionals and they want to stay as objective as they can, "but these are red flags where you expose people to temptations and they may not augur well for objectivity."
Source: myjoyonline
Comments