Auditors have noted in 2017, over Le2 billion (Le2,320,000,000 and $4,447 USD) was withdrawn from the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF) account at the Bank of Sierra Leone (BSL) to defray the cost of funeral expenses of senior government officers. There is no regulation, policy or other legal instrument to justify these disbursements, according to auditors. Section 26 (1) of the Public Financial Management Act, 2016 requires the spending of public money only when expressly authorized by the Constitution or an Act of Parliament or an appropriation under an Appropriations Act. “In the absence of a legal instrument, such disbursements are considered ineligible, apart from the fact that no legal instrument existed for the disbursement of such funds, there was also no evidence to indicate how the stated amounts were expended on the funerals of the deceased,” said Lara Taylor-Pearce, Auditor General. These ineligible disbursements, she stated, may create suspicion that government’s much needed funds have been misappropriated. The Accountant General should ensure that all payments made out of the CRF are supported by regulations, government policies or other legal instruments. She also faulted the reporting method regarding revenue collected by the National Revenue Authority (NRA), which should be deposited through transit accounts into the CRF at the BSL and accurately recorded into the NRA’s books of Account. According to the Auditor General, the Accountant General should ensure that the said revenue collected must be deposited and recorded in the Integrated Financial Management Information System (IFMIS). However, her auditors noted that the reconciliation of revenue transactions within the NRA, and between the Accountant General’s Department and the NRA was not always performed. The team identified some reconciliation problems, which have to do with arrears in respect of taxes relating to customs duty as per payment plans were not consistent with the amounts recorded as outstanding arrears in the ASYCUDA system. This resulted in a difference of almost Le2 billion (Le 1,934,422,979). Also, the closing balance in respect of the total revenue collection in the NRA books of account for June 2017 was less than the opening balance for July 2017 by over Le1 billion (Le 1,107,078,280). It was also discovered that the revenue arrears balance disclosed in the notes to the CRF account in respect of Customs Services Department was inconsistent with the records made available by the NRA. The records made available by the NRA exceeded the amount disclosed in the Consolidated Fund account by over Le2 billion (Le 2,354,000,000). AG Taylor-Pearce continued that without proper reconciliations at the assessment, collection and reporting stages, government revenue will remain relatively uncontrolled, funds are likely to be misused and it will prove impossible to ascertain whether revenue disclosed in the public accounts is free from material misstatement. The NRA should ensure that the necessary action is taken in reconciling NRA’s various books of account including records maintained in cash books and the ASYCUDA system and on the other hand, the Accountant General should be reconciling his revenue records like tax receipts from the various revenue streams, revenue arrears and others with the same records from the NRA, and take follow-up action on all reconciling items.
ZJ/22/1/19
By Zainab Iyamide Joaque
Wednesday January 23, 2019.