The Auditor General’s 2016 report focused primarily on the collection and administration of local taxes and other revenue generated by 18 chiefdoms deemed as high risk areas based on prior audit outcomes. The audit of 18 chiefdoms revealed missing receipts books, disbursements without supporting documents and revenue not brought to account amounting to Le423,984,243.
The audit revealed that local tax receipt books, issued by the chiefdom administration clerks to the treasury clerks with an estimated revenue value of Le147,200,000, were not presented to the audit team for inspection.
Supporting documents for disbursements of funds totalling Le215,658,743 were not presented for audit inspection for the period under review. “Since those supporting documents were not made available for audit inspection, there is a risk that payments were made for goods or services that were not actually delivered,” the report adds.
Additionally, receipt books revealed Le61,125,500 was not accounted for. This is in contravention of Section 62 (1) of the Financial Management Regulations (FMR), which states, “All departmental revenue or other public moneys collected shall be paid into a bank account authorised by the Accountant General or into a Treasury daily or if it is not possible at the earliest opportunity.”
The Auditor General recommended strengthening internal controls over the collection of revenue and a strict adherence to the provisions of Section 62(1) of the FMR.
A number of local chiefdoms, the report said, did not perform monthly bank reconciliations during the period subject to audit. Institutions should properly reconcile the statements received regularly from commercial banks and cashbook records maintained during their operation.
Non-payments of tax precepts, another irregularity, prevailed in Small Bo and Wandor Chiefdoms where Le7,587,000 and Le1,114,500, respectively, were not deducted and paid to the Kenema District Council. It was recommended that the chiefdom administration clerks should ensure that those precepts were immediately paid to the Kenema District Council.
There were also instances where documents were not presented upon request by auditors. This was prevalent in about 80% of audited chiefdoms. Failure to present these vital documents grossly hindered the audit exercise.
“Even after the 15-day deadline given to the defaulting chiefdoms to produce those documents, the personnel responsible could not or did not make them available for audit inspection,” the Auditor said.
ZJ/23/6/18
By Zainab Iyamide Joaque
Monday June 25, 2018.
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